THE 


UTHYPHRO,  APOLOGY, 
&  CRITO 

’  pi.r;  ^ 

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Introduction ,  Translations  and  Notes 


F.  M.  STAWELL 


BOSTON  COLLEGE 

FACULTY  LIBRARY 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS. 


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CONTENTS 


NTRODUCTION  . 

• 

• 

•  · 

PAGE 

.  ix 

Summary 

OF  THE  EuTHYPHRO  . 

•  · 

.  xxi 

Γεχτ  and 

Translation 

OF 

THE 

Euthyphro 

.  2 

Γεχτ  and 

Translation 

OF 

THE 

Apology  . 

•  54 

Text  and 

Translation 

OF 

THE 

Crito 

.  128 

ioTEs  . 

•  · 

• 

• 

•  · 

.  167 

I  have  the  pleasure  of  thanking  Dr.  Adam,  of 
Emmanuel  College,  and  the  Syndics  of  the  Cambridge 
University  Press,  for  most  kind  permission  to  use  their 
text  of  the  Apology  and  the  Crito  ;  and  Dr.  A.  J.  Evans, 
for  generously  allowing  the  reproduction  of  his  beautiful 
gem,  a  work  of  the  finest  period,  presenting  Socrates  as 
we  may  conceive  him  to  have  stood  before  his  judges. 

F.  Melian  Stawell 


Vll 


INTRODUCTION 


The  trial  of  Socrates  took  place  at  Athens  in  the 
year  399  b.c.  He  was  accused  of  impiety  and  of 
corrupting  the  youth  of  his  country,  condemned,  and  put 
to  death.  The  wrongfulness  of  the  sentence  has  become 
proverbial,  but  yet  it  is  possible,  with  the  evidence  before  us, 
to  understand  how  it  came  about,  and  even  in  some  degree 
to  enter  into  the  feelings  of  those  who  condemned  him. 
Plato,  with  astonishing  courage  and  fairness,  has  shown 
us  in  the  Euthyphro  not  only  the  bewildering  character  of 
his  master’s  method,  not  only  the  sting  of  his  irony,  not 
only  the  humiliation  his  exposures  caused,  but  deeper  than 
all  these,  the  terrible  solvent  of  his  relentless  questioning. 
Euthyphro  is  baffled  and  put  to  shame,  but  that,  after  all, 
matters  little :  what  matters  is  the  pressing  home  of  the 
question,  What  and  where  is  the  true  standard  of  Good  ? 
We  cannot  take  refuge  in  arbitrary  assertions  of  our  own 
convictions  ;  the  conflict  of  men’s  opinions  is  enough  to 
prevent  that :  we  cannot  shelter  ourselves  behind  the  will 
of  the  Gods,  or  even  of  God  ;  for  we  must  still  ask,  Is  a 
thing  holy  because  God  wills  it,  or  does  God  will  it 
because  it  is  holy  ?  How  are  we  to  find  a  way  of 
knowing  whether  a  thing  is  right  or  wrong,  as  men  find  a 
way  out  of  their  disputes  on  size  and  bulk  by  the  simple 

ix 


X 


INTRODUCTION 


process  of  measurement  ?  Yet,  if  we  can  never  reach  a 
decision,  if  we  have  no  hold  on  an  ultimate  standard,  how 
can  we  hope  to  live  a  life  that  is  really  good  ?  Now  it  is 
true  that  the  mind  of  Socrates,  as  the  mind  of  Plato,  was 
always  full  of  this  hope  ;  it  rings  out  through  all  the  irony 
of  the  last  sentence  in  this  very  dialogue ;  it  is  the  spring 
that  prompted  Socrates  in  all  his  questioning  ;  it  is  the 
very  foundation  for  Plato’s  great  structure  of  the  Republic. 
There  we  find  plainly  stated  the  belief  that  over  and 
above  the  varying  opinions  of  men  there  stands  an 
Absolute  Good,  that  men  can  climb  to  an  apprehension  of 
it,  and  that  only  in  virtue  of  such  an  apprehension  can 
true  order  be  introduced  into  life.  But  we  have  not  so 
much  as  this  stated  here.  As  Dr.  Adam  says  :  “  The  most 
that  can  be  elicited  from  the  Euthyphro  in  the  way  of 
positive  teaching  as  to  piety  is  that  piety  consists  in  working 
under  God  for  the  production  of  some  good  result  not 
specified.”  *  And  how  far  will  that  take  us  ?  How  far 
will  it  take,  say,  a  man  like  Euthyphro  ?  He  has  already^ 
cut  adrift  from  the  traditional  practice  of  his  time,  and 
the  result  is  nowise  for  the  better ;  and  he  has  cut  adrift! 
largely  because  of  his  trust  in  his  own  powers  of  inquiry.] 
“If  you  had  not  thought  you  knew  better  than  other] 
people  you  would  not  believe  you  were  right  now  inj 
prosecuting  your  own  father  for  murder.” 

Are  we  then  to  hope  for  improvement  simply  by  con-1 
tinuing  the  process  further?  Now  Plato  and  Socrates! 
would  not  have  shrunk  from  this  question  ;  nor  would 
they  have  shrunk  from  answering  Yes.  The  fancied 
friend  and  equal  of  Socrates  must  become  his  true  disciple 
and  never  flinch  from  the  search  until  he  finds.  But  thus 

*  Plato,  Euthyphro.  Introduction,  p.  xiv. 


INTRODUCTION 


XI 


to  surrender  all  pretensions  to  infallibility,  all  belief  in 
infallibility  already  found  here  and  now,  and  still 
to  go  on  with  the  search  in  hope  and  faith,  is  not, 
and  has  never  been,  as  all  history  shows,  anything  but 
the  hard-won  triumph  of  a  few.  Small  wonder  if  many 
an  average  Athenian  felt  that  Socrates  and  his  followers 
made  the  ground  rock  beneath  the  State. 

And  our  appreciation  of  Plato’s  boldness  in  writing 
thus  after  his  master’s  death  is  only  increased  if  we  realise 
that,  to  judge  by  our  other  records,  Socrates  would 
hardly  have  pushed  his  analysis  of  Good  so  far  as  this 
himself.  According  to  what  Xenophon  tells  us  in  the 
Memorabilia ,  he  was  content  to  define  justice  as  obedience 
to  the  laws  of  the  State ;  nor  does  he  seem  to  have  ever 
realised  the  full  depth  and  pressure  of  the  conflict  between 
opposing  desires  in  the  nature  of  man.  Men,  he  believed, 
could  not  help  seeking  the  true  good  when  they  saw  it ; 
they  could  only  do  wrong  from  ignorance :  nor  could  it 
be  hard  to  reconcile  the  different  elements  of  the  same 
Good.  As  Sidgwick  says  of  him,  in  his  admirable  study, 
“  That  good  is  consistent  with  itself,  that  the  beautiful  is 
also  profitable,  the  virtuous  also  pleasant,  he  was  always 

ready  to  prove  in  concrete  cases .  If  he 

prized  the  wisdom  that  is  virtue,  the  4  good  of  the  soul,’ 
above  all  other  goods, — if  in  his  absorption  in  the  pursuit 
and  propagation  of  it,  he  endured  the  hardest  penury — he 
steadily  maintained  that  such  a  life  was  richer  in  enjoy¬ 
ment  than  a  life  of  luxury  ;  if  he  faced  death  rather  than 
violate  the  laws  of  his  country,  he  was  prepared  with  a 
complete  proof  that  it  was  probably  his  interest  to  die.”  * 
But  however  easily  attainable  the  harmony  may  have 

*  Sidgwick,  History  of  Ethics ,  p.  28. 


Xll 


INTRODUCTION 


seemed  to  Socrates  himself,  none  the  less  his  method  led, 
and  led  directly,  to  such  searchings  of  heart  and  mind  as 
might  well  make  the  weaker  spirits  doubt  if  any  harmony 
could  be  attained  at  all. 

Nor  will  it  do  to  overlook  the  lesser  causes  that 
contributed  to  the  general  misgiving  and  animosity.  Of 
the  bitterness  that  sprang  from  humiliation  and  envy  there 
is  little  need  to  speak.  But  his  attitude  to  the  old 
religion  is  a  more  intricate  question.  In  spite  of  his  own 
simple  piety,  his  own  conformity,  he  was  in  close  sympathy, 
if  we  may  trust  Plato,  with  those  who  criticised  the  grosser 
myths  as  unworthy  fictions.  This  was  to  undermine, — 
as  Aristophanes  plainly  saw, — little  as  Socrates  may  have 
wished  it,  the  shelter  that  men  had  made  for  themselves 
so  far  in  the  midst  of  the  terrible  universe.  That  shelter 
was  childish,  it  is  true,  childish  and  crude, — but  it  was 
familiar,  it  was  charming,  it  offered  a  comfortable  home 
where  weakness  and  aspiration  could,  it  might  seem,  dwell 
side  by  side.  One  could  know  how  to  deal  with  a  Moon- 
Goddess  who,  if  cruel,  was  chaste  and  fair  ;  with  a  Sun- 
God  who,  if  subject  to  occasional  lapses  of  morality  himself, 
guided  the  days  and  the  seasons,  demanded  punctual 
sacrifice,  and  clean  hands,  of  his  worshippers.  But  how 


of  fiery  stone,  rolling  through  the  sky  ?  Socrates  mi  ght 
disagree  with  Anaxagoras  about  sun  and  moon,  as 
Xenophon  tells  us  he  did  ( Mem .  iv.  7.  6)  ;  he  might 
discourage  and  disapprove  of  physical  speculation  alto¬ 
gether,  as  disapprove  he  did, — but  when  men  came  to 
criticise  Apollo,  to  look  up  to  the  sky  and  use  their 
wits,  where  was  it  bound  to  end  ?  And  what  was 
to  take  the  place  of  the  friendly,  if  capricious,  divinities 


INTRODUCTION 


•  ·  · 
Xlll 

that  would  go  ?  Who  would  hear,  as  Socrates  heard, 
the  very  voice  of  God  in  the  whisper  of  his  own  heart  ? 
What  was  his  “  spiritual  sign  ”  to  the  commonplace 
Athenian  ?  And  there  must  have  been  many  a  lesser 
Alcibiades  among  his  followers,  brilliant  and  unprincipled, 
to  make  men  who  were  no  alarmists  look  with  terror  on 
any  loosening  of  the  old  ties.  Nor  was  Socrates,  as  we 
may  learn  from  the  Apology  itself,  careful  to  quiet  any 
fears  in  the  hearts  of  his  judges,  or  heal  any  bitterness. 
On  the  contrary,  in  that  most  noble  speech  he  seems, 
one  might  almost  say,  to  have  played  for  death,  and 
indeed  to  admit  as  much  at  the  end  when  he  tells  how  he 
looked  for  the  spiritual  sign  to  turn  him  back  and  found 
that  it  let  him  go  forward.  The  Apology ,  as  we  have  it, 
is  of  course  the  work  of  Plato.  Xenophon  tells  us  that 
Socrates  spoke  without  preparation.  But  Plato  would 
assuredly  have  wished  to  represent  his  master’s  defence  as 
it  really  was,  and  the  speech  itself  has  a  stamp  so  individual, 
so  characteristic  of  Socrates,  so  harmonious  with  all  the 
other  evidence,  that  it  has  been  universally  accepted  as 
containing  the  substance  of  what  was  actually  said. 

It  is  well,  therefore,  to  note  both  what  it  says  and  what 
it  refuses  to  say.  Now  it  is  true  that  Socrates  dissociates 
himself  from  the  new  physical  theories,  but  he  speaks  of 
them  openly  as  the  common  talk  of  the  market-place  ;  he 
is  evidently  on  his  guard  against  committing  himself  to  all 
the  old  mythology ;  he  readily  admits  that  the  young  men 
of  wealth  and  leisure  were  his  eager  followers ;  above  all 
he  stings  the  vanity  and  self-complacence  of  his  judges  in 
every  possible  way  ;  it  is  as  though  he  had  set  himself  to 
play  his  part  of  the  gadfly  better  than  he  had  ever 
played  it  before.  Meletus,  his  chief  official  accuser,  spoke 


XIV 


INTRODUCTION 


for  the  poets ;  Lycon,  another,  stood  for  the  orators ; 
Anytus,  the  third,  and  probably  the  most  influential,  was 
a  rich  tradesman  and  leading  democrat,  whose  son  seems 
to  have  turned  from  his  father  to  Socrates,  and  afterwards 
fallen  into  evil  ways.  The  poets,  the  orators,  the 
democracy,  the  foolish  self-satisfied  fathers,  come  directly 
under  the  lash.  And  if  the  judges  acquit  him,  he  would 
have  them  understand  all  that  the  acquittal  means.  They 
will  set  him  free  to  do,  and  to  the  full,  all  that  he  has 
done  before.  It  is  in  fact  surprising,  as  he  grants  himself, 
that  the  verdict  of  “guilty  ”  should  have  been  given  by  a 
majority  so  narrow — just  over  sixty  votes  from  a  total  of 
five  hundred  and  one — and  among  judges  drawn,  as  the 
Athenian  custom  was,  by  lot  from  the  ordinary  citizens. 

Acquittal  after  such  a  defence  would,  indeed,  have 
been,  as  Grote  points  out,  “  a  sanction  on  the  part  of  the 
people  and  the  popular  Dikastery  to  his  teaching.” 
(Hist,  of  Greece ,  Vol.  VII.,  Part  II.,  c.  68.)  His 
condemnation,  moreover,  would  not  have  meant  his  death, 
had  he  consented  to  one  inch  of  compromise.  It  was 
the  law  that  in  case  of  condemnation  the  accuser  should 
propose  one  penalty  and  the  accused  another :  the  judges 
had  to  choose  between  the  two,  no  other  proposal  being 
allowed.  Socrates  would  propose  nothing  more  than  the 
small  sum  of  thirty  minas  (equal  to  about  ^120  of  our 
money), — and  this  to  be  paid  by  his  friends, — against  the 
“Death”  of  his  accusers.  And  even  after  the  trial  was 
all  over,  it  is  abundantly  clear,  from  the  Crito  alone,  that 
the  authorities  would  have  connived  at  his  escape.  But 
he,  of  course,  would  not  connive  at  it  himself.  Nowhere, 
perhaps,  has  Plato’s  tenderness  and  skill  in  character¬ 
drawing  been  better  shown  than  in  this  simple  piece. 


INTRODUCTION 


XV 


Tears  and  laughter  meet  in  the  sketch  of  Crito,  trying  to 
take  a  high  moral  tone  in  order  to  show  his  old  friend 
that  the  right  and  brave  thing  is  to  run  away,  breaking 
down  into  a  pitiful  cry  that  if  only  he  and  his  like  had 
))een  of  any  good  they  could  have  saved  their  master.  The 
same  delicate  humour  plays  like  a  smile  over  all  the  last 
words  of  Socrates — he  will  do  his  best  to  listen  to  the 
dictates  of  self-interest  and  cowardice,  only  he  cannot  help 
his  ears  ringing  with  the  call  to  heroism.  It  was  thus  he 
waited,  in  prison  and  under  chains,  during  the  thirty  days 
between  his  condemnation  and  his  death.  This  long 
'delay  was  due  to  the  fact  that  his  trial  fell  at  a  time 
considered  holy.  The  Athenians  sent  their  sacred  ship 
to  Delos  every  year  for  Apollo’s  festival ;  and  while  it 
was  absent  no  one  could  be  put  to  death.  The  ship  had 
started  just  before  his  sentence,  and  the  Crito  is  supposed  to 
record  a  conversation  which  took  place  the  day  before  it 
ireturned.  It  is  here  that  our  selection  ends,  but  Plato  has 
not  ended  thus.  The  close  of  the  whole  drama  may  be 
read  in  that  great  dialogue,  where  Phaedo  tells  his  friend 
Echecrates  how  Socrates  spent  his  last  day  talking  with  his 
friends  on  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  in  the  evening 
drank  the  hemlock.  Crito  has  asked  for  his  last  instruc¬ 
tions :  ( Phaedo ,  c.  64)  “  ‘  What  would  you  have  us  do 
or  your  children  ?  What  would  you  think  best  ? ’ 

‘  Just  what  I  always  have  thought,  Crito,’  answered  he, 
‘nothing  new.  If  you  care  for  your  own  souls,  you  will 
do  what  is  best  for  me  and  mine,  and  for  yourselves, 
whatever  else  you  do.  .  .  .’ 

‘  Yes,’  Crito  answered,  ‘  we  will  obey  you  with 
all  our  hearts.  And  how  would  you  have  us  bury 
you  ?  ’ 


XVI 


INTRODUCTION 


‘Just  however  you  choose/  he  answered,  ‘  if  you 
can  catch  me  and  not  find  I  slip  through  your  hands/ 

“  Then  he  gave  a  quiet  laugh  and  looked  up  at  us,  and 
said,  ‘  You  see,  my  friends,  I  cannot  convince  Crito  that 
I  am  the  Socrates  who  is  talking  with  you  now  :  .  .  . 

he  believes  I  am  the  body  that  will  be  a  corpse  in  a  little 
while,  and  you  heard  him  actually  ask  how  he  is  to  bury 
me.  As  for  my  saying,  as  I  have  said  all  this  time,  that 
when  I  take  the  drug  I  shall  pass  from  you  and  be  here 
no  more,  but  away  in  some  island  of  the  blest, — all  that 
seems  to  him  mere  idle  talk  to  comfort  myself  and  you. 
Now  you  must  be  my  sureties  with  him,  as  he  was  my 
surety  with  the  court,  only  your  promise  must  be  the 
opposite  of  his.  He  swore  that  I  would  not  run  away, 
but  you  must  swear  I  will,  the  moment  I  am  dead,  and 
then  it  will  not  be  so  hard  for  him  to  bear  ;  he  will  not 
grieve  for  my  sufferings  when  he  sees  my  body  burnt  or 
put  into  the  ground  ;  he  will  never  say  it  is  Socrates  he 
buried.  .  .  /” 

Socrates  then  goes  to  the  bath  “to  save  the  women  the 
trouble  of  washing  his  corpse,”  and  his  friends  wait, 
thinking  of  what  their  life  will  be  without  him,  “like 
children  who  have  lost  their  father.” 

“And  when  it  was  nearly  sunset  he  came  back  to  us, 
and  sat  down  and  talked,  but  not  for  long,  for  the  officer 
of  the  Eleven  came  in  and  up  to  him,  and  said,  *  Socrates,  I 
shall  not  have  to  blame  you  as  I  have  blamed  others  for 
being  angry  with  me  and  cursing  me  when  I  am  forced  by 
the  authorities  to  tell  them  they  must  drink  the  poison. 
I  have  seen  all  this  time  that  you  are  the  noblest  and 
kindest  and  best  man  who  has  ever  been  here,  and  I  am 
quite  sure  now  you  will  not  be  angry  with  me,  but  with 


INTRODUCTION 


XVII 


them  :  for  you  know  who  are  to  blame.  And  now — you 
know  what  I  have  come  to  tell  you  :  farewell,  and  try  to 
bear  what  must  be,  patiently.’  And  he  turned  away  to  go 
with  tears  in  his  eyes.  But  Socrates  looked  up  at  him. 
*  You  too,’  said  he,  ‘  farewell  to  you :  and  I  will  do  as 
you  say.’  And  to  us,  ‘How  kind  the  good  fellow  is! 
All  the  time  I  have  been  here  he  used  to  come  and  see 
me,  and  talk  to  me  sometimes,  and  was  always  the  best  of 
men :  and  now  you  see  his  honest  grief.  But  come, 
Crito,  and  let  us  do  what  he  says.  Some  one  had  better 
bring  the  poison  if  it  is  prepared ;  if  not,  let  him  prepare 
it  now.’ 


‘  Oh,  Socrates,’  said  Crito,  ‘  the  sun  is  still  above  the 
mountains,  and  I  have  known  many  prisoners  who  have 
not  taken  it  till  quite  late  at  night.  .  .  .  Why  do  you 

hurry?  There  is  some  time  left  still.’  But  Socrates 
said,  ‘  Yes,  Crito :  those  of  whom  you  speak  had  good 
reason  for  what  they  did — they  thought  they  gained  by  it. 
And  I  have  good  reason  for  not  doing  so  ;  I  should  gain 
nothing  but  the  contempt  of  my  own  soul  for  clinging  to 
life  and  saving  the  empty  cup.  No,’  said  he,  ‘  you  must 


go  and  do  as  I  ask.’ 

“When  Crito  heard  that,  he  signed  to  the  servant  who 
stood  by,  and  he  went  out,  and  after  a  long  while  came 
back  with  the  man  who  was  to  give  the  poison,  and  who 
brought  it  ready  ground  in  a  bowl.  And  when  Socrates 
saw  him,  ‘Well,  my  friend,’  said  he,  ‘you  understand 
these  things, — tell  me  what  I  ought  to  do.’  ‘You  have 
only  to  drink  it,’  he  answered,  ‘and  walk  about  until 
your  legs  grow  heavy  and  then  lie  down,  and  it  will  act  of 
itself.’  With  that  he  handed  him  the  cup  ;  and  he  took 
it,  Echecrates :  he  took  it  quite  cheerfully  and  calmly, 

b 


XV111 


INTRODUCTION 


without  changing  countenance  or  turning  pale  at  all ;  he 
only  gazed  straight  at  the  man  in  his  old  way,  like  a 
bull,  and  said,  ‘  What  do  you  think  ?  Could  I  make  a 
libation  ?  Is  there  enough  of  it  for  that  ?  ’ 

‘  Well/  answered  the  man,  ‘  we  do  not  grind  more  than 
we  think  will  be  right  to  take/ 

‘  I  see/  he  said :  ‘  but  at  any  rate  we  can  and  ought 
to  pray  that  the  journey  from  this  world  to  the  other  may 
be  fair,  and  that  prayer  I  make/  Then  he  put  the  cup 
to  his  lips  and  drank  it  off,  quite  quietly  and  happily. 
Till  that  moment  most  of  us  had  managed  to  keep  back 
our  tears  :  but  when  we  saw  him  take  the  cup  and  drink, 
and  that  it  was  all  over,  we  could  bear  it  no  longer :  in 
spite  of  myself  the  tears  ran  down  my  cheeks,  and  I 
covered  my  head  and  sobbed — not  for  him :  no,  but  for 
myself,  because  I  had  lost  him.  Crito  had  already  got  up 
and  gone  aside,  because  he  could  not  stop  his  tears.  And 
Apollodorus,  who  had  been  weeping  all  the  time,  burst  into 
such  bitter  sobs  and  cries  that  he  broke  down  all  of  us, 
except  Socrates  himself.  He  turned  to  us  and  said, 
‘  My  friends,  my  friends,  what  is  it  you  are  doing  ?  I 
have  heard  that  a  man  ought  to  die  in  peace.  Keep 
silence  and  be  strong/ 

“  And  when  we  heard  him  we  were  ashamed  and  stopped 
our  tears.  Soon  he  said  that  his  legs  felt  heavy,  and  he  lay 
down,  as  he  had  been  bidden,  and  after  a  little  while  the 
man  put  his  hands  on  his  feet  and  legs,  and  then  pressed 
his  foot  hard  and  asked  if  he  felt  it,  and  he  said  No,  and 
after  that  he  touched  his  legs,  and  showed  us  step  by  step 
that  he  was  growing  cold.  And  Socrates  felt  his  own 
limbs  himself,  and  said  that  when  it  reached  his  heart  he 
would  be  gone.  By  this  time  all  the  middle  of  his  body 


INTRODUCTION 


XIX 


had  grown  cold,  and  then  he  uncovered  his  head  to 
say — and  they  were  his  last  words — ‘  Crito,  we  ought 
to  offer  a  cock  to  the  God  of  Health,*  do  not 
forget.  ’  *  Yes/  Crito  answered — ‘  and  tell  me  if  there 

is  anything  else/  But  he  did  not  answer,  and  after  a 
few  moments  he  stirred,  and  then  the  man  uncovered  him, 
and  we  saw  his  eyes  were  fixed,  and  Crito  closed  them. 

“  That  was  the  end,  Echecrates,  of  our  friend,  the  man 
we  thought  the  noblest  of  all  we  ever  knew,  and  the  wisest, 
and  the  best.” 

*A  cock  was  offered  to  Aesculapius  on  recovery  from  an 
illness.  Socrates  means  that  his  cure  is  just  complete:  “My 
long  sickness  of  health  and  living  now  begins  to  mend  ” 
( Timon  of  Athens ,  V.  i).  See  Archer-Hind’s  note  in  his  edition 
of  the  Phaedo. 


SUMMARY  OF  THE  EUTHYPHRO 


2  A— 3E. 
c.  i. — iii. 

4  A — 4E. 
c.  iv. 

5A.  c.v. 
5DE.  c.  vi. 

6D.  c.vii. 

6E. 

7E.  c.viii. 

8A. 

9E.  c.  xi. 


10A  (see 
10E). 
c.  xii. 


Subject:  HOLINESS 
Socrates  is  to  be  tried  for  impiety. 

Euthyphro  is  prosecuting  his  father  for 
murder.  Is  it  holy  or  impious  to  do  so  ? 
What  is  Holiness  ? 

Holiness  is  to  do  as  I,  Euthyphro,  am 
doing.  ( First  Definition. ) 

But  what  is  the  definition  of  holiness  in 
general  ? 

Holiness  is  what  the  Gods  love.  ( Second 
Definition.) 

But  the  Gods  may  have  diverging  views, 
<> without  an  unquestioned  standard  by  which 
to  decide. 

So  that  the  same  thing  would  be  both  holy 
and  unholy. 

Let  us  say  then  :  Holiness  is  what  all  the 
Gods  love.  /.  e.  Holiness  is  the  same  as 
the  object  of  all  the  Gods’  love.  ( Third 
Definition. ) 

Now  it  is  loved  by  them  because  it  is  holi¬ 
ness  ;  it  is  not  holiness  because  it  is  loved  by 
them. 


XXI 


xxii  SUMMARY  OF  THE  EUTHYPHRO 


ioC. 


10D. 


10E — 1 1  A. 
c.  xiii. 


i  iB. 

1 2  A. 

1 2D. 
c.  xiv. 
12E. 


1  3 A.  c.xv. 

1 3D. 

13E.  c.  xvi. 
1 3  E- 1 4  A. 


14B. 


But  a  thing  is  never  loved  because  it  is  the 
object  of  love  ;  it  is  the  object  of  love 
because  it  is  loved. 

Then  Holiness  cannot  mean  merely  the 
same  as  the  object  of  the  Gods 9  love. 

(See  9E.) 

Otherwise,  since : 

Holiness  is  loved  because  it  is  Holiness , 
( 10A,  10E) ;  it  would  be  loved  because 
it  is  the  object  of  love ,  which  is  impossible. 
(10C); 
and  since  : 

Holiness  is  the  object  of  love ,  because  il 
is  loved,  (10C),  it  would  be  Holiness 
because  it  is  loved,  which  is  contrary  tc 
the  hypothesis,  (10A,  10E. ) 

What,  then,  is  Holiness  ? 

Is  all  Righteousness  Holiness  ? 

No.  Holiness  is  a  kind  of  Righteousness, 
And  what  kind  ? 

Holiness  is  the  kind  of  Righteousness  thai 
deals  with  the  care  of  the  Gods. 

( Fourth  Definition.) 
And  what  kind  of  care  ? 

The  care  that  is  service. 

But  all  service  produces  something. 

What ,  then,  is  the  great  work  produced  b) 
that  service  to  the  Gods  which  is  Holiness  i 

(  Unanswered.] 
Holiness  is  to  offer  prayer  and  sacrifice  ii 
ways  that  please  the  Gods.  (Hifti 
Definition.) 


SUMMARY  OF  THE  EUTHYPHRO  xxiii 


15C.  But  this  is  practically  our  old  Third 

I  c.  xvii.-xix.  Definition — Holiness  is  what  the  Gods  love 
— over  again.  And  that  was  proved  faulty. 

15D.  What ,  then ,  is  Holiness  P 

The  leading  points  in  the  Dialogue  are  indicated  in  this 
summary  by  italics.  They  are :  ( 1 )  the  definite  raising 
of  the  question  over  which  men  quarrel  :  What  is  Holi¬ 
ness?  (2)  The  admission  that  the  Gods  love  Holiness 
because  it  is  holy  ;  it  is  not  holy  because  they  love  it. 
(3)  The  suggestion  that  the  essential  work  of  Holiness  is 
to  call  into  being  under  the  Gods  some  glorious  work,  as 
yet  unnamed.  (4)  The  confession  that  the  standard  of 
Holiness  is  not  yet  found. 

Once  it  is  granted  that  the  Gods  love  Holiness  because 
it  is  holy,  it  is  plain  that  the  Third  Definition  “  Holiness 
is  what  the  Gods  love  ”  cannot  be  an  adequate  account. 
The  purely  logical  and  somewhat  bewildering  argument 
which  follows,  (10C — 11A),  emphasising  the  faulty 
nature  of  the  definition,  is  thus,  in  a  sense,  of  subsidiary 
importance, — and  might  be  treated  as  such  on  a  first 
reading. 


EUTHYPHRO 


β· 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΩΝ 

Τα  του  διαλόγου  πρόσωπα 
ΕΎΘΤΦΡΠΝ — 2ΩΚΡΑΤΗ2 

2  A  I.  Τι  νεώτερον,  ω  ^ωκρατες,  γεγονεν,  ότι  σν  τας  εν 
Λύκε ιω  καταλιπών  διατριβάς  ei/^αδε  νυν  όιατριβεις  7 τερι 
την  τον  βασιλέων  στοάν ;  ον  γάρ  πον  και  σοι  γε  δικτ^  τι< 
ουσα  τυγχάνει  προς  τον  βασιλέα,  ώσ7 τερ  εμ,οι. 

2Ω.  Ουτοι  δή  Αθηναίοι  γε,  ώ  Ε νθνφρον,  δίκην  αντη\ 
καλουσιν,  άλλα  γραφήν. 

2  Β  ΕΥΘ.  Τι  φ^ς;  y ραφήν  σε'  τις,  ώς  εοικε,  γεγραπται;  οί 
γάρ  εκείνο  γε  κaτayvωσoμaι,  ώς  συ  γε  ετερον. 

2Ω.  Ου  γάρ  ουν. 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Αλλά  σε  άλλος  ; 

^Ω.  Πάνυ  γε. 

ΕΥΘ.  Τις  ουτος  ;  I 

2Ω.  Οΰδ’  αυτός  7τάνυ  τι  γιγνώσκω,  ώ  Ε  νθνφρον,  τον  αν 
δρα·  νε'ος  γάρ  τις  μοι  φαίνεται  και  άγνώς·  όνομαζονσ 
μεντοι  αυτόν,  ώς  εγωρ,αι,  Μελ^τον.  εστι  δε  τον  δτ}ρο 
Πιτ^ευς,  ειτινα  νω  εχεις  Πιτ#ε'α  Με'λ^τον  οΓον  τετανότριχ 
και  ου  πάνυ  ευγε'νειον,  επιγρυπον  δε. 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουκ  εννοώ ,  ώ  ^ώκρατες.  αλλά  δτ)  τινα  γραφή 
2  C  σε  γεγραπται  ; 

2Ω.  'Ηντινα ;  ουκ  άγενντ},  ερ,οιγε  δοκεΐ*  το  γάρ  νει 
όντα  τοσουτον  πράγρ,α  εγνωκεναι  ου  φαυλόν  εστιν.  εκειν( 
γάρ,  ώς  φησίν ,  οιδε,  τινα  τρόπον  οΐ  νέοι  διαφθείρονται,  κι 
τινες  οί  διαφθείροντες  αυτους.  και  κινδυνεύει  σοφός  * 

είναι,  και  την  εμην  άμαθιαν  κατιδών,  ως  διαφ$ειροντος  το 

2 

I 


I.  What  can  have  happened,  Socrates,  to  make  you  2  A 
desert  your  place  in  the  Lyceum  and  be  waiting  here  at 
this  hour  in  the  King  ArchonY  porch  ?  You  cannot, 
of  course,  have  a  suit  for  him  to  hear,  as  I  have. 

Soc.  Well,  no,  Euthyphro,  they  do  not  call  it  a  suit, 
but  a  charge. 

Euth.  What  do  you  mean  ?  I  suppose,  that  some  one  2  B 
has  brought  a  charge  against  you?  For  I  am  not  to 
hear,  I  know,  that  you  have  charged  any  one  else. 

Soc.  Certainly  not. 

Euth.  Then  somebody  else  has  accused  you  ? 

Soc.  Exactly. 

Euth.  Who  is  it? 

Soc.  Well,  Euthyphro,  I  really  cannot  say  I  know  the 
man  myself ;  he  is  young,  I  think,  and  unknown.  His 
name,  I  understand,  is  Meletus,  and  the  deme  to  which  he 
belongs  is  Pitthos, — if  you  happen  to  remember  a  certain 
Meletus  of  Pitthos,  a  lank-haired,  hook-nosed  fellow, 
with  not  much  of  a  beard. 

Euth.  I  have  no  recollection  of  him,  Socrates.  But 
what  on  earth  is  the  charge  he  has  brought  against  you  ?  2  C 

Soc.  The  charge  ?  Oh,  it  shows  great  spirit,  I  think. 

It  is  no  small  thing  for  a  young  man  to  understand  such 
matters.  He  knows,  so  he  says,  how  the  young  are  ruined, 
and  who  ruin  them.  He  must  be  a  shrewd  fellow  ; 
he  has  realised  how  unprincipled  I  am,  and  how  I  ruin 

3 


4 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡ12Ν 


ηλικιωτας  αυτοί),  έρχεται  κατηγορήσων  μου  ώσπερ  7 τρός 
μητέρα,  προς  την  πόλιν.  καί  φαίνεται  μοι  των  πολιτικά ι 

2  D  μόνος  άρχεσθαι  όρθως ·  όρ0ώς  yap  εστι  των  νέων  πρώτοι 

επιμεληθηναι,  όπως  έσονται  ο  τι  άριστοι,  ώσπερ  γεωργοί 
αγαθόν  των  νέων  φυτών  εικός  πρώτον  επιμεληθηναι,  μετά  δ< 
τούτο  και  των  άλλων,  και  8η  και  Μέλητος  ίσως  πρώτον  μει 

3  A  ημάς  έκκαθαίρει  τους  των  νέων  τας  βλάστας  8ιαφθείροντας 

ως  φησιν  έπειτα  μετά  τούτο  8ηλον  ότι  των  πρεσβυτέρων 
έπιμεληθείς  πλείστων  καί  μεγίστων  αγαθών  αίτιος  rjj 
πόλει  γενησεται,  ως  γε  τό  εικός  ξυμβηναι  εκ  τοιαυτης 
αρχής  άρξαμένω. 

Π.  ΕΥΘ.  Β ουλοίμην  αν,  ω  ^ ωκρατες ,  άλλ’  ορρωδώ  μ'ι 
τουναντίον  γένηται.  άτεχνως  γάρ  μοι  8οκεΐ  άφί  εστίας 
άρχεσθαι  κακουργεΐν  την  πόλιν,  επιχείρων  άόικεΐν  σέ.  κα 
μοι  λέγε,  τί  και  ποιουντά  σέ  φησι  8ιαφθείρειν  τους  νέους 
3  Β  ϋ$Ω.  ’ Άτοπα ,  ω  θαυμάσιε,  ως  ουτω  γ’  άκοΰσαΐ.  φησ 
γάρ  με  ποιητήν  είναι  θεών,  καί  ως  καινούς  ποιουντά  θεονς 
τους  δ’  αρχαίους  ον  νομίζοντα,  εγράφατο  τούτων  αυτών 
ενεκα,  ως  φησιν. 

ΕΥΘ.  Μανθάνω,  ώ  ^ ωκρατες ·  οτι  8η  συ  τό  8αιμόνιον 
φής  σαυτω  εκάστοτε  γίγνεσθαι,  ως  ουν  καιν  οτ  ο  μουντός  σο\ 
περί  τα  θεία  γέγραπται  ταντην  την  γραφήν,  καί  ως  8 ιοβό¬ 
λων  8η  έρχεται  εις  τό  8ικαστηριον,  ει8ως  ότι  ευ8ιάβολα  π 
τοιαυτα  προς  τους  πολλούς,  καί  έμου  γάρ  τοι,  όταν  τι  λέγιι 
3  C  εν  τη  εκκλησία  περί  των  θείων,  προλέγων  αυτοίς  τά  μέλλοντα 
καταγελωσιν  ως  μαινομένου.  καίτοι  ου8έν  ό  τι  ουκ  άληθέ 
είρηκα  ων  προείπον’  άλλ’  όμως  φθονουσ ιν  ημίν  πάσι  τον 
τοιουτοις.  άλλ’  ου8έν  αυτών  χρη  φροντίζειν,  άλλ’  όμό(Χ 


ίέναι. 


EUTHYPHRO 


5 


the  men  of  his  own  age,  and  he  runs  to  tell  his  mother, 
the  State,  about  me.  I  consider  him  the  only  man  who 
has  taken  up  politics  by  the  right  end.  It  is  quite  right  2  D 
to  care  for  the  young  first  and  foremost,  and  for  their 
good, — just  as  it  is  natural  for  a  wise  farmer  to  think  of 
his  young  plants  before  the  rest.  So,  no  doubt,  Meletus 
intends  to  weed  us  out  first,  those  who  ruin  the  growth  of  3  A 
the  young,  according  to  him :  and  then  of  course  he 
will  proceed  to  the  care  of  our  grown  men  and  confer  the 
greatest  of  all  benefits  upon  the  State,  as  we  may  well 
expect  after  a  beginning  of  this  kind. 

II.  Euth.  I  only  wish  it  might  be  so,  Socrates,  but  I 
.am  terribly  afraid  of  the  reverse.  I  think  he  has  simply 
begun  to  destroy  the  State  from  its  foundations  when  he 
sets  about  harming  you.  Tell  me  now,  how  in  the 
world  does  he  suppose  that  you  are  ruining  the  young  ? 

Soc.  Well,  my  friend,  in  ways  that  certainly  do  sound  3  B 
extraordinary.  He  asserts  that  I  create  Gods,  and  for 
creating  the  new  Gods  and  not  believing  in  the  old,  he 
attacks  me, — it  is  just  for  that,  he  says. 

Euth.  I  see,  Socrates.  I  suppose  it  is  because  you  speak 
of  the  supernatural  sign  that  comes  to  you.  So  he  has 
brought  this  charge  against  you  of  coining  a  new  religion, 
and  comes  into  the  law-courts  prepared  to  rouse  prejudice 
against  you,  because  he  knows  that  the  majority  are  easy  to 
prejudice  in  these  matters.  Why,  when  I  begin  to  speak 
on  religion  in  the  Assembly  and  prophesy  what  is  going  to  3  C 
happen,  they  laugh  at  me  and  shout  me  down  as  though 
■  i  were  insane.  And  yet  I  have  never  foretold  them  one 
f  thing  that  was  not  true, — but  they  are  so  jealous  of  men 
'like  us.  Still  we  must  grapple  with  our  work,  and 
not  think  of  them. 


6 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡίΙΝ 


III.  2Ω.  *Ω  φίλε  Ε υθυφρον,  άλλα  τό  μεν  καταγελασ- 
θηναι  Ισως  ουδεν  πράγμα.  Α,θηναιοις  γαρ  τοι,  ως  εμ,οι 
δοκεΐ,  ου  σφοδρά  ρ,ελει,  αν  τινα  δεινόν  οιωνται  είναι,  μη 
ρ,εντοι  διδασκαλικόν  τ^ς  αυτόν  σοφίας ·  ον  δ  άν  και  άλλου? 
3  D  οιωνται  7τοιεΐν  τοι ουτους,  θυμούνται,  εΐ τ’  ουν  φθάνω,  ως  συ 
λέγει?,  είτε  δι’  άλλο  τι. 

ΕΥΘ.  Τουτου  ουν  περί  όπως  ποτέ  προ?  ερ,ε  εχουσιν,  ου 
πάνυ  επιθυμώ  πειραθηναι. 

5Ω.  ’Ίσως  γάρ  συ  ρ,έν  δοκεΐ?  σπάνιον  σεαυτόν  παρεχειν 
καί  διδάσκειν  ουκ  εθελειν  τήν  σεαυτον  σοφίαν *  εγώ  δέ 
φοβούμαι  μη  υπό  φιλανθρωπίας  δοκώ  αυτοίς  ο  τι  περ  εχω 
έκκεχυρ,ενω?  παντι  άνδρί  λεγειν,  ου  μονον  ανευ  μισθού,  αλ¬ 
λά  καί  προστιθεις  άν  ηδεως,  εί  τι?  μου  εθελοι  ακουειν.  ει 
μ\ν  ουν,  ό  νυν  δτ^  έλεγον,  μελλοιεν  ρ.ου  καταγελαν,  ώσπερ 
3  Ε  συ  φί;?  σαυτοΰ,  ουδεν  άν  εί^  ά^δέ?  παίζοντας  καί  γελώντα? 
εν  τώ  δικαστήρια)  διαγαγειν*  ει  δε  σπουδασονται,  τουτ  τ^δ^ 
07ry  άποβησεται  άδηλον  πλην  υμίν  τοΐ?  μαντεσιν. 

ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ*  ίσω?  ουδεν  εσται,  ώ  %ωκρατες,  πράγμα,  άλλα 
συ  τε  κατά  νουν  άγωνιεΐ  Tryv  δίκην,  οίΐμαι  δε  και  ερ,ε  Tryv 
εμην. 

IV.  2Ω.  *Έστι  δέ  δ^  σοι,  ώ  Ε υθυφρον,  τι?  η  δίκη  ] 
φεύγει?  αυτήν  η  διώκεις ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Διώκω. 

2$Ω.  Τινα; 

^  Α  ΕΥΘ.  'Όν  διώκων  αυ  δοκώ  μαίνεσθαι. 

3Ω.  Τι  δαι ;  πετάμενόν  τινα  διώκεις  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πολλου  γε  δει  πετεσθαι,  ος  γε  τυγχάνει  ών  e 
ράλα  πρεσβύτης. 

2Ω.  Τι?  ουτο?  ; 


EUTHYPHRO 


7 


III.  Soc.  Oh,  dear  Euthyphro,  to  be  laughed  down  may 
'be  of  no  consequence  at  all.  Athenians,  it  seems  to  me,  do 
:not  much  object  to  a  man’s  being  clever,  provided  he  does 
not  teach  what  he  knows,  but  if  they  think  he  makes 
others  like  himself,  they  get  angry, — perhaps  through  3  D 
envy,  as  you  say,  or  for  some  other  reason. 

Euth.  Well,  as  far  as  that  goes,  I  do  not  particularly 
care  to  test  their  feeling  about  me. 

Soc.  No ;  and  very  likely  they  think  you  are  sparing  of 
your  company  and  do  not  care  to  impart  your  knowledge ; 
but,  in  my  case,  I  fear  that  my  fondness  for  people  makes 
them  believe  I  pour  forth  all  I  know  to  any  and  every 
man, — not  only  without  pay,  but  ready  to  pay  myself,  and 
that  with  the  utmost  pleasure,  if  I  could  get  any  one  to 
hear  me. 

Well,  as  I  said  just  now,  if  they  are  only  going  to 
laugh  at  me,  as  you  say  they  laugh  at  you,  there  would  be  3  E 
nothing  unpleasant  in  that, — just  a  little  amusement  and 
laughter  in  court, — but  if  they  are  in  earnest,  well,  what 
the  end  of  it  will  be,  none  but  you  prophets  can  say. 

Euth.  Oh,  Socrates,  most  likely  it  will  be  of  no 
consequence  at  all ;  you  will  conduct  your  case  to  your 
own  satisfaction,  and  so,  I  think,  shall  I. 

IV.  Soc.  And  this  case  of  yours,  Euthyphro,  what  is 
it  about  ?  Are  you  defending  or  prosecuting  ? 

Euth.  Prosecuting. 

Soc.  Who  is  it  you  are  after  ? 

Euth.  Ah,  somebody  that  people  think  me  mad  to  go  after.  4  A 

Soc.  Why,  has  he  got  wings  ?  Can  he  fly  ? 

Euth.  Far  from  that,  he  happens  to  be  very  old. 

Soc.  And  who  is  he  ? 


8 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΏΝ 


ΕΥΘ.  'Ο  ερδς  πατήρ. 

3Ω.  'Ο  σός,  ώ  βέλτιστε; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  μεν  ονν. 

ΪΩ.  Έστι  δε  τι  το  έγκλημα  καί  τίνος  ή  δίκη ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Φόνον,  ώ  ^ώκρατες. 

3Ω.  Ήράκλεις.  ή  πον,  ώ  Ε νθνφρον,  αγνοείται  νπό 
των  πολλών  όπη  ποτέ  όρθώς  εχει.  ον  γαρ  οιμαί  γε  τον  επι- 
4  Β  τνχοντος  είναι  όρθώς  αντό  πράζαι,  άλλα  πόρρω  πον  ήδη 
σοφίας  ελα ννοντος. 

ΕΥΘ.  Πδρρω  μίντο ι  νή  Δι,  ω  %ώκρατες. 

5Ω.  'Εστι  δε  δη  των  οικείων  τις  ό  τεθνεώς  νπό  τον  σον 
πατρός;  ή  δήλα  δή·  ον  γαρ  αν  πον  νπερ  γε  άλλοτρίον 
επεζήεισθα  φόνον  αντω. 

ΕΥΘ.  ΓελοΓον,  ώ  %ώκρατες,  ότι  οιει  τι  διαφερειν  είτε 
α λλοτριος  είτε  οικείος  ό  τεθνεώς,  άλλ  ον  τοντο  μόνον  δείν 
φνλαττΕΐν,  ειτε  εν  δίκη  εκτεινεν  ό  κτείνας  είτε  μή,  καί  el 
μΕν  εν  δικτρ  εάν,  ει  δε  μή,  επεζιεναι,  εάνπερ  ό  κτείνας  συν- 
4  C  εστιος  σοι  και  ομοτράπεζος  y‘  ίσον  γαρ  τό  μίασμα  γίγνεται, 
εαν  ζννής  τω  τοιοντω  ζννειδώς  καί  ρ,-ί)  άφοσ ιοΐς  σεαντόν  τε 
και  εκείνον  τή  δίκη  επεζιών.  επεί  ο  γε  άποθανών  πελάτης  τις 


ryv  εμος,  καί  ώς  εγεωργονμεν  εν  τή  Νά£ω,  εθήτενεν  εκεί  παρ' 
ήμΐν.  παροινήσας  ονν  καί  οργιστείς  των  οίκετών  τινί  των 
ημετερων  άποσφάττεί  αντόν.  ό  ονν  πατήρ  ζννδήσας  τονς 
πόδας  καί  τάς  χείρας  αντον,  καταβαλών  εις  τάφρον  τινά, 
πεμπει  δενρο  άνδρα  πενσόμενον  τον  εζηγητον  ό  tl  χρή 
4  D  ποιεΐν.  εν  δε  τοντω  τω  χρόνω  τον  δεδεμενον  ώλιγώρει  τε 
καί  ήμελει  ώς  άνδροφόνον  καί  ονδεν  ον  πράγμα,  εί  καί 


EUTHYPHRO 


9 


Euth.  My  father. 

Soc.  Your  own  father,  my  friend  ? 

Euth.  Precisely. 

Soc.  And  what  do  you  charge  him  with  ? 

Euth.  With  murder,  Socrates. 

Soc.  With  murder  !  Well,  Euthyphro,  it  is  plain  that 
the  majority  do  not  understand  the  rights  of  this.  To  do 
such  a  thing,  and  be  right  in  doing  it,  cannot  be  possible,  I 
am  sure,  for  every  man  ;  but  only  for  him  who  has  4  B 
reached  the  heights  of  wisdom. 

Euth.  Yes,  Socrates,  the  very  heights. 

Soc.  So  it  is  one  of -your  relatives,  is  it  not  ?  that  has 
been  killed  by  your  father  ?  Oh,  but  of  course  it  must 
be.  You  would  never  have  accused  him,  I  know,  of 
murder  for  a  stranger’s  sake. 

Euth.  You  make  me  smile,  Socrates,  by  supposing  it 
could  make  any  difference  whether  the  murdered  man  was 
a  stranger  or  no,  and  not  that  the  only  question  we  have 
to  ask  is,  whether  the  man  who  killed  him  killed  him 
lawfully  or  not ;  if  lawfully,  we  have  to  let  him  go,  if 
not,  we  have  to  prosecute  ;  that  is,  if  the  murderer  lives 
under  the  same  roof  and  eats  at  the  same  board.  For  the  4  C 
contamination  is  just  as  great  if  you  associate  with  such  a 
creature,  and  do  not  purify  yourself,  and  him  too,  by 
bringing  him  to  justice.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  murdered 
man  was  a  dependant  of  mine,  one  of  the  labourers  we 
hired  on  a  farm  of  ours  in  Naxos.  He  got  drunk  one 
day  and  had  a  quarrel  with  a  servant  of  the  house,  and 
cut  his  throat.  My  father  had  him  bound  hand  and 
foot  and  flung  into  a  pit,  while  he  sent  a  man  over  here 
to  ask  the  Interpreter  *  what  ought  to  be  done.  Mean-  4  D 
while  he  left  his  prisoner  alone  and  neglected, — thinking 

*  See  Note  1. 


ΙΟ 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΩΝ 


άποθάνοί·  07 τερ  ονν  καί  επαθεν.  νπο  yap  λιμόν  καί  ρίγους 
καί  των  δεσμών  αποθνήσκει  πριν  τον  άγγελον  παρά  του 
εξηγητον  άφικεσθαι.  ταντα  δή  ονν  καί  αγανακτεί  ο  τε 
πατήρ  καί  οι  άλλοι  οικείοι,  οτι  εγώ  νπερ  τον  άνδροφόνον 
τω  πατρί  φόνου  επεζερχομαι,  οντε  άποκτείναντι,  ως  φασιν 
εκείνοι,  οντ  εί  ο  τι  μάλιστ  άπεκτεινεν,  άνδροφόνον  γε  ον- 
τος  τον  άποθα νόντος,  ου  δεΐν  φροντίζειν  νπερ  τον  τοιοντον * 
άνόσιον  γάρ  είναι  το  νίόν  πατρί  φόνον  επεζιεναι'  κακώς 
είδότες,  ω  Ί&ωκρατες,  το  θειον  ως  εχει  τον  όσιον  τε  περί  καί 


τον  άν οσίου. 


!§Ω.  δε  δή  προς  Διδ?,  ώ  Ε νθνφρον,  οντωσί  ακριβώς 
οίει  επίστασθαι  περί  των  θείων,  όπη  ε χει ,  καί  των  οσίων  τε 
καί  ανοσιών,  ώστε  τούτων  οντω  πραχθεντων,  ως  σι)  λεγεις, 
ου  φοβεί  δικαζόμενος  τω  πατρί,  όπως  μή  αν  σν  άνόσιον 
πράγμα  τύγχανες  πράττων ;  i 

ΕΥΘ.  Οΰδεν  γάρ  άν  μον  όφελος  είη,  ω  Ίίωκρατες,  ονδε 
5  Α  τω  αν  διαφεροι  Ε νθνφρων  των  πολλών  άνθρωπων,  εί  μή  τα 
τοιαντα  πάντα  άκριβως  είδείην. 

V.  2Ω.  *Α  ρ  ονν  μοι,  ω  θαυμάσιε  Ε  νθνφρον,  κράτιστον 
εστι  μαθητή  σω  γενεσθαι  καί  προ  τής  γραφής  τής  προς 
Μ ελητον  αυτά  ταντα  προκαλεϊσθαι  αυτόν,  λεγοντα,  ότι  εγωγε 
καί  εν  τω  έμπροσθεν  χρόνω  τα  θεία  περί  πολλοί)  εποιονμην 
είδεναι,  καί  ννν  επειδή  με  εκείνος  αντοσχεδιάζοντά  φησι  και 
καινοτομονντα  περί  των  θείων  εζαμαρτάνειν,  μαθητης  δη 
γεγονα  σός — καί  εί  μεν,  ω  Μ,ελητε,  φαίην  άν,  Ε νθνφρονα 
5  Β  ομολογείς  σοφόν  είναι  τα  τοιαΰτα  και  όρθως  νομίζειν,  και 
εμε  ήγον  καί  μή  δικάζον'  εί  δε  μή,  εκείνω  τω  διδασκαλία  λάχε 
δίκην  πρότερον  ή  εμοί  ως  τους  πρεσβντερονς  διαφθειροντι, 
εμε  τε  καί  τον  αυτοί)  πατέρα ,  εμε  μεν  διδάσκοντι,  εκείνον  δ* 


EUTHYPHRO 


1 1 

him  a  murderer,  and  that  it  was  no  matter  if  he  did  die ; 
which  is  exactly  what  occurred.  He  perished  through 
hunger  and  cold  and  the  pain  of  the  bonds  before  the  mes¬ 
senger  returned.  Now  my  father  is  quite  angry  with  me 
and  so  are  the  other  servants,  because,  as  they  say,  I  accuse 
him  of  murder  on  the  murderer’s  account,  although  he  did 
not  kill  him,  according  to  them,  and  even  if  he  did  twenty 
times  over,  yet  since  the  dead  man  was  a  murderer  no  one 
ought  to  trouble  about  him  :  it  is  an  unholy  thing  for  a  4  E 
1  son  to  prosecute  his  father  for  murder  ;  but  they  entirely 
misunderstand — do  they  not  ? — the  divine  law  of  holiness. 

Soc.  And  you,  my  friend,  do  you  believe  that  you 
understand  the  divine  laws  so  well  and  everything  they 
mean,  that,  after  this  has  happened  as  you  describe,  you 
have  no  fear  in  bringing  this  action  against  your  father 
that  you  may  be  doing  an  unholy  deed  in  your  turn  ? 

Euth.  No,  Socrates,  none ;  there  would  be  no  use  in 
me, — Euthyphro  would  be  no  different  from  other  men,  if  5  A 
I  did  not  understand  all  these  matters  perfectly. 

V.  Soc.  How  splendid,  Euthyphro  !  Will  it  not  be  the 
best  thing  in  all  the  world  for  me  to  become  your  scholar  ? 

And  then,  before  facing  Meletus  in  court,  I  may  challenge  * 
him  and  tell  him  that  I  also  have  earnestly  desired 
before  this  to  learn  the  laws  of  God,  and  now  that  he 
says  I  am  guilty  of  inventing  theories  of  my  own,  and 
coining  new  religions,  why,  I  have  made  myself  your 
pupil, — and  I  could  say,  “  See  here,  Meletus,  if  you 
admit  that  Euthyphro  is  wise  in  these  matters,  and  that  5  B 
the  views  he  holds  are  right,  then  admit  it  of  me  as  well, 
and  give  up  the  prosecution.  And  if  not,  call  my  teacher 
into  court  and  not  me,  and  accuse  him  of  ruining  the  old, 

— me,  for  instance,  and  his  father,  by  teaching  the  one 

*  See  Note  2. 


12 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΩΝ 


νουθετουντί  τε  και  κολάζοντι '  καί  εάν  μή  μοι  πείθηται  μηδε 
άφιγ]  τής  δίκης  ή  αντ  εμού  γράφηται  σε,  αυτό.  ταντα  λεγειν 
εν  τω  δικαστηρίω  α  π ρον  καλόν  μην  αυτόν. 

ΕΥΘ.  Ναι  μα  Δία,  ω  ^ωκρατες,  εί  αρα  εμε  επυχειρήσειε 
Ύράφεσθ αι,  ευροιμ’  αν,  ως  οιμαι,  οπη  σαθρός  εστι,  και 
πολύ  αν  ήμίν  7 τρότερον  περί  εκείνου  λογος  έγένετο  εν  τω 
δικαστηρίω  ή  περί  εμού. 

3Ω.  Και  εγώ  τοι,  ω  φίλε  εταίρε,  ταντα  γι γνώσκων  μαθη¬ 
τής  επιθυμώ  γενεσθαι  σός,  ειδως  ότι  και  άλλος  που  τις  και 
ο  ΜεΛ^τος  οντος  σε  μεν  ονόε  οοκει  οραν,  εμε  οε  ούτως 
ό£έως  και  ραδίως  κατεΐδεν,  ώστε  άσεβείας  εγράφατο.  νυν 
ονν  προς  Δι ός  λέγε  μοι,  ο  νυν  δη  σαφώς  είδεναι  διισχυρίζου' 
ποιόν  τι  το  ενσεβες  φής  είναι  και  το  άσεβες  και  περί  φόνου 
καί  περί  των  άλλων  ;  ή  ου  ταυτόν  εστιν  εν  πάση  πράξει  το 


όσιον  αυτό  αυτώ,  καί  το  άνόσιον  αυ  του  μεν  οσίου  παντός 
εναντίον,  αυτό  δε  αΰτω  όμοιον  καί  εχον  μίαν  τινα  ιδέαν 
κατα  την  όσιότητα  παν,  ο  τι  περ  αν  μελλη  άνόσιον  είναι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάντως  δήπου,  ω  % ωκρατες . 

VI.  ^Ω.  Λέγε  δη,  τι  φής  είναι  το  οσιον,  καί  τι  το 
άνόσιον ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Λέγω  τοίνυν,  ότι  το  μεν  όσιόν  εστιν  όπερ  εγώ  νυν 
ποιώ,  τω  άδικουντι  ή  περί  φόνους  ή  περί  ιερών  κλοπας  ή  τι 
άλλο  των  τοιουτων  εξαμαρτάνοντι  επεξιεναι,  εάν  τε  πατήρ 
ων  τυγχάνη  εάν  τε  μήτηρ  εάν  τε  άλλος  όστισουν,  το  δε  μή 
επεξιεναι  άνόσιον'  επεί,  ω  2$ ωκρατες ,  θεασαι  ως  μ,έγα  σοι 
ερω  τεκμήριον  του  νόμου,  οτι  ούτως  €χει,  ο  και  άλλοις  ήδη 
εΐπον,  ότι  ταυτα  όρθως  αν  είη  ουτω  γιγνόμενα,  μή  επιτρεπειν 
τω  άσεβουντι  μηδ’  αν  όστισουν  τυγχάνη  ων.  αυτοί  yap  οί 


EUTHYPHRO 


*3 


and  punishing  the  other.”  And  if  Meletus  will  not  listen 
to  me  nor  give  up  the  case  nor  accuse  you  instead  of  me, 
then  I  will  state  in  court  the  challenge  that  I  made  to 
him. 

Euth.  Indeed,  Socrates,  if  he  really  did  try  to  accuse 
me  I  would  soon  find  out,  I  think,  where  his  weak  point  5  C 
lay.  There  would  be  far  more  talk  about  him  in  court, 

I  know,  than  about  me. 

Soc.  And  I,  my  dear  friend,  just  because  I  recognise 
that,  desire  to  become  your  pupil.  For  I  realise 
that  this  man  Meletus,  among  others,  does  not 
appear  so  much  as  to  see  you ;  but  he  has  seen  through 
me  so  quickly  and  so  completely,  that  he  has  accused 
me  of  impiety.  So  you  must  really  tell  me  what  you 
assured  me  just  now  you  understood  so  well :  what  you 
consider  holiness  and  unholiness  to  be,  in  questions  of 
murder  and  in  general.  Is  not  holiness  always  one  and  5  D 
the  same  thing  in  every  case,  and  unholiness,  of  course, 
the  opposite  of  holiness,  always  like  itself,  always  of 
one  and  the  same  type  in  relation  to  holiness,  whatever  it 
be  that  is  unholy  ? 

Euth.  Most  assuredly  so,  Socrates. 

VI.  Soc.  Tell  me  then,  what  do  you  say  is  holiness  and 
what  unholiness  ? 

Euth.  Well,  I  say  holiness  is  to  do  just  what  I  am 
doing  now, — to  prosecute  the  wrong-doer  in  a  case  of 
murder  or  sacrilege,  or  any  similar  offender,  be  it  father 
or  mother  or  whoever  it  be,  and  not  to  prosecute  is  5  E 
unholy.  For  observe,  Socrates,  what  a  strong  proof  I 
can  give  you  that  the  law  is  as  I  say, — a  proof  I  have 
already  used  with  others, — that  shows  it  must  be  right 
never  to  spare  the  impious,  whoever  they  happen  to  be. 


Η 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡίΙΝ 


άνθρωποι  τνγχάνονσι  νομίζοντας  τον  Δία  των  θαων  αριστον 
6  Α  και  δικαιότατον ,  και  τούτον  δμολογονσι  τον  αντον  πα τάρα 
δησαι,  οτι  τονς  νιαις  κατάπιναν  ονκ  αν  δίκη,  κάκεινον  ya  αν 
τον  αντον  πατάρα  ακταμαΐν  δι  ετερα  τοιαντα'  αμοι  δα  χαλα- 
παίνονσιν,  οτι  τω  πατρί  απαζάρχομαι  άδικουντι,  και  όντως 
αυτοί  αυτοί?  τα  εναντία  λεγουσι  παρί  τα  των  θαων  και  παρί 
αμον. 

25Ω.  τΑ ρά  ya ,  ώ  Ευ#υφρον,  τοντ  άστίν ,  ου  άνακα  την 
γραφήν  φανγω,  οτι  τα  τοιαντα  απαιδάν  τις  παρι  των  θαων 
λάγη,  δνσχαρως  πως  αποδίδομαι'  δι  ά  δη,  ως  άοικα,  φησαι 
τίς  μα  αζαμαρτάναιν.  νυν  ονν  οι  και  σοι  ταυτα  ζννδοκαι 
6  Β  τω  αν  αΐδότι  παρι  των  τοιοντων,  ανάγκη  δη ,  ώ?  εοικε ,  και 
ημιν  ζνγχωραΐν'  τι  γάρ  και  φησομαν,  οϊ  γα  και  avrol 
δμολογονμαν  παρί  αυτών  μηδάν  εΐδεναι ;  άλλα  μοι  αίπα 
προς  Φιλιού,  συ  ώ?  αληθώς  ηγαΐ  ταυτα  οντω  γαγονάν αι; 

ΕΥΘ.  Και  άτι  γα  τούτων  θανμασιωταρα ,  ώ  ^ώκρατε?,  ά 
οέ  πολλοί  ονκ  ίσασιν. 

3Ω.  Και  πόλαμον  άρα  ηγαΐ  συ  είναι  τω  οντι  εν  τοι?  #εοι? 
προς  άλληλονς,  και  αχθρας  γα  δεινά?  και  μάχας  και  άλλα 
τοιαντα  πολλά,  οια  λάγαταί  τα  νπο  των  ποιητών,  και  υπο  των 
6  C  αγαθών  γραφάων  τά  τε  άλλα  ιερά  ημΐν  καταπαποίκιλται 
και  δη  και  τοι?  μαγάλοις  ΤΙαναθηναίοις  6  πάπλος  μαστός 
των  τοιοντων  ποικιλμάτων  ανάγεται  αίς  την  άκρόπολιν. 
ταΰτ’  άληθη  φωμαν  είναι,  ώ  Ε νθνφρον ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Mr;  μόνα  γα,  ω  ^,ωκρατας'  άλλ’  οπαρ  άρτι  άιπον, 
καί  άλλα  σοι  εγώ  7τολλά,  αάνπαρ  βονλη,  παρί  των  θαίων 
διηγησομαι,  ά  συ  άκουων  ευ  οιδ’  οτι  άκπλαγησαι. 

VII.  2Ω.  Ονκ  αν  θανμάζοιμ ι.  αλλά  ταυτα  μ,ε'ν  ρ,οι 


EUTHYPHRO 


Men’s  own  judgment  tells  them  that  Zeus  is  the  best  and 
most  righteous  of  the  Gods,  and  they  admit  that  he  put  6  A 
his  father  in  chains  for  the  crime  of  swallowing  his  sons  ; 
that  Cronus,  in  his  turn,  mutilated  his  father  for  a 
similar  cause  ;  and  now  they  are  indignant  with  me 
because  I  prosecute  my  father  when  he  has  done  wrong, 
and  so  they  contradict  themselves  about  the  Gods  and  me.  ^ 

Soc.  Now  I  wonder,  Euthyphro,  if  this  can  be  the 
reason  why  I  am  attacked,  because  I  find  it  hard  to 
’accept  such  stories  as  these  about  the  Gods?  That  is 
really  why  some  people  will  say,  I  believe,  that  I  am  guilty. 

Yet  now  if  you  accept  them  too,  you  who  understand  these  6  B 
things,  it  would  seem  I  must  agree.  For  what  can  I 
have  to  say  who  confess  myself  wholly  ignorant  in  the 
matter  ?  But  tell  me,  in  the  name  of  our  friendship,  do 
you  really  believe  that  these  things  occurred  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  Socrates,  I  do  ;  and  other  things,  too, 
even  more  astounding,  which  ordinary  people  do  not  know. 

Soc.  Then  do  you  really  think  there  is  warfare  among 
the  Gods,  and  terrible  strife,  and  enmities  and  quarrels,  as 
the  poets  say,  and  as  we  see  in  the  decorations  our 
great  artists  put  in  our  temples  and  on  our  sacred  6  C 
things  ?  At  Athena’s  holy  festival,  you  know,  the 
garment  that  is  carried  up  the  Acropolis  for  her  is 
covered  with  such  devices.  Are  we  to  say  that  they 
are  true,  Euthyphro  ? 

Euth.  And  not  only  they,  Socrates.  As  I  said  just 
now,  I  can  tell  you  ever  so  many  other  tales  about  the 
Gods,  if  you  like,  at  which  you  would  be  thunder-struck, 

I  am  sure. 

VII.  Soc.  I  should  not  be  surprised  if  I  were.  Some 


ι6 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡίΙΝ 


εισ αυθις  επί  σχολής  διηγησει'  νυνί  δε,  όπ ερ  άρτι  σε  ηρόμην, 
6  D  πεψω  σαφεστερον  είπεϊν.  ον  yap  με,  ω  εταίρε,  το  πρότερον 
ικανως  εοιόαξας  ερωτησ αντα  το  όσων,  ο  τι  ποτ  ειη,  αλλα 


μου  είπες,  ότι  τούτο  τυγχάνει  όσων  ον,  6  συ  νυν  ποιείς, 


φόνον  επεζιων  τω  πατρί. 

ΕΥΘ.  Και  άληθη  γε  ελεγον,  ω  ^ άκρατες . 

3Ω.  Ίσως,  άλλα  γάρ,  ω  Ε υθυφρον,  και  άλλα  πολλά 
φης  είναι  όσια. 

ΕΥΘ.  Και  γάρ  εστιν. 

5Ω.  Μεμ,ν^σαι  ονν,  ότι  ου  τούτο  σοι  δι εκελευόμην,  εν 
τι  ^  ουο  με  οιοαξαι  των  πολλών  οσίων,  αλλ  εκείνο  αυτό  το 
είδος,  ω  πάντα  τα  όσια  όσια  εστιν;  εφησθα  γάρ  που  μιά 
6  Ε  Ιδέα  τά  τε  ανόσια  ανόσια  είναι  καί  τα  όσια  όσια,  η  ου 


μνημονεύεις  ; 

ν 


ΕΥΘ.  Εγωγε. 

2Ω.  Ύ αυτήν  τοίννν  με  αυτήν  διδάχον  την  ιδέαν,  τις  ποτέ 
εστιν,  ΐνα  εις  εκείνην  άποβλεπων  καί  χρωμενος  αυτή  παρα- 
οειγματι,  ο  μεν  αν  τοιουτον  η,  ων  αν  η  συ  η  άλλος  τις 
πράττη,  φω  όσων  είναι,  ο  δ;  αν  μη  τοιουτον,  μη  φω. 

ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ’  εί  ουτω  βουλει,  ω  *2, ωκρατες ,  καί  ουτω  σοι 


φράσω. 

^Ω.  ’Αλλά  μην  βούλομαι  γε. 

ΕΥΘ.  ?/Εστι  τοίνυν  το  μεν  τοΐς  θεο'ίς  προσφιλές  όσιον, 
το  δε  μη  προσφιλές  άνόσων. 

7  Α  ]§Ω.  Παγκάλω?,  ω  Ε  υθυφρον,  καί  ώς  εγώ  εζητουν  άπο- 
κρίνασθαί  σε,  ουτω  νυν  άπεκρίνω.  εΐ  μεντοι  αληθώς,  τούτο 
ουπω  οίιδα,  άλλα  συ  δί)λον  ότι  επεκδιδάξεις  ως  εστιν  άληθη 
ά  λεγεις. 


EUTHYPHRO 


*7 


other  time  you  will  tell  me  all  about  them,  when  we  are  at 
leisure.  But  now  could  you  try  to  explain  more  clearly 
what  I  asked  you  a  moment  ago  ?  You  see,  my  friend,  6  D 
you  did  not  teach  me  all  I  wanted  at  first  when  I  asked 
you  what  holiness  really  was  ;  you  only  said  that  what 
you  were  doing  now, — prosecuting  your  father  for  murder, — 
happened  to  be  holy. 

Euth.  Yes,  and  I  was  quite  right  in  saying  so. 

Soc.  Perhaps  you  were.  But,  you  see,  you  say  a  great 
many  other  things  are  holy  too. 

Euth.  And  so  they  are. 

Soc.  Now,  do  you  not  remember  that  I  begged  you  to 
show  me, — not  one  or  two  holy  things  out  of  many,  but 
just  that  essential  character  which  makes  all  holiness  holy  ? 

You  said, — did  you  not  ? — that  holy  things  were  holy  and 
unholy  things  unholy,  through  one  type  and  one  alone.  6  E 
Do  you  not  remember  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  I  do. 

Soc.  Then  show  me  that  one  Type ;  teach  me  what  it  is, 
so  that  I  can  turn  to  it  and  use  it  for  a  pattern,  and  declare 
that  what  is  like  it  in  all  that  you  or  others  do,  is  holy, 
and  what  is  unlike,  unholy. 

Euth.  Well,  Socrates,  I  will  answer  in  that  way,  if  you 
wish. 

Soc.  I  do,  very  much. 

Euth.  I  say,  then,  that  what  the  Gods  love  is  holy,  and 
what  they  do  not  love  is  unholy. 

Soc.  Admirable,  Euthyphro,  quite  admirable  !  That  η  A 
is  exactly  the  kind  of  answer  I  was  trying  to  get  from 
you.  Whether  it  is  true  or  not,  I  cannot  say  as  yet,  but 
doubtless  you  will  go  on  to  show  me  you  are  right. 

c 


ι8 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡίΙΝ 


?B 


ΕΥΘ.  ΐίάνν  μεν  ονν. 

VIII.  Φέρε  δη,  έπισκεφωμεθα  τι  λέγομε ν.  το  μεν 
θεοφιλές  τε  καί  6  θεοφίλης  άνθρωπος  όσιος,  το  δε  θεομισες 
και  δ  θεομισης  ανόσιος’  ου  ταυτόν  δ ’  έστίν ,  άλλα  το  έναν- 
τιωτα τον,  το  όσων  τω  άνοσίω.  ονχ  ούτως ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουτω  μεν  ονν. 

]£Ω.  Καί.  εν  γε  φαίνεται  είρησθαι. 

ΕΥΘ.  Δοκώ,  ώ  'Χωκρατες. 

^Ω.  Ονκονν  καί  οτί  στασιάζονσιν  οί  θεοί ,  ω  Ε νθνφρον, 
καί  δίαφέρονταί  άλληλοις  καί  εχθρα  έστίν  έν  αύτοΐς  προς 
άλληλονς,  καί  τοντο  εΐρηται ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Έΐρηται  γάρ. 

2Ω.  *Εχθραν  δε  καί  όργάς,  ω  άριστε,  η  περί  τίνων  δια¬ 
φορά  ποιεί ;  ωδε  δε  σκοπωμεν.  άρ  αν,  εί  διαφεροίμεθα  εγώ 
τε  καί  συ  περί  αριθμοί),  δπότερα  πλείω,  η  περί  τούτων  δια¬ 
φορά  έχθρονς  άν  ημάς  ποιοι  καί  όργίζεσθαι  άλληλοις,  η 
η  C  έπί  λογισμόν  έλθόντες  περί  γε  των  τοιοντων  ταχύ  αν 
άπαλλαγεΐμεν ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

^Ω.  Ονκονν  καί  περί  τον  μείζονος  καί  έλάττονος  εί 
διαφεροίμεθα,  έπί  το  μετρεΐν  έλθόντες  ταχύ  παυσαίμεΟ’ 

άν  της  διαφοράς ; 

ΕΥΘ.  νΕστι  ταΰτα. 

^Ω.  Και  έπί  γε  τό  ίστάναι  έλθόντες,  ως  έγωμαι,  περί 
του  βαρντέρον  τε  καί  κονφοτέρον  διακριθεΐμεν  άν  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πώς  γάρ  ον  ; 

5Ω.  Περί  τίνος  δε  δη  διενεχθέντες  καί  έπί  τίνα  κρίαιν 
ον  δννάμενοι  άφικέσθαι  έχθροί  τε  άν  άλληλοις  εΧμεν  και 
όργιζοίμεθα ;  ίσως  ον  πρόχειρόν  σοί  έστιν,  άλλ’  εμώ 


EUTHYPHRO 


19 


Euth.  Most  certainly  I  will. 

Soc.  Now,  let  us  see  exactly  what  we  mean.  What 
the  Gods  love  and  the  man  they  love  is  holy,  what  they 
hate  and  the  man  they  hate,  unholy.  And  holiness  is  not 
the  same  as,  but  the  exact  contrary  of,  unholiness.  Is  not 
that  what  we  said  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  that  was  it. 

Soc.  And  it  seems  a  very  good  thing  to  say. 

Euth.  Well,  yes,  I  think  it  does.  7  B 

Soc.  And,  moreover,  that  the  Gods  are  at  variance, 
Euthyphro,  and  differ  with  one  another,  and  feel  enmity 
towards  each  other,  did  we  not  say  that  too  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  we  did. 

Soc.  Now,  my  friend,  what  kind  of  dispute  is  it  that 
produces  enmity  and  anger  ?  Let  us  look  at  it  like  this. 

If  you  and  I  were  to  differ  about  the  numbers  of  two 
sets,  and  not  agree  as  to  which  was  the  greater,  could  that 
make  us  enemies  and  fill  us  with  animosity  ?  Should  we 
not  proceed  to  count  the  numbers,  and  soon  put  an  end  to  7  C 
our  dispute  ? 

Euth.  Certainly  we  should. 

Soc.  And  suppose  we  differed  on  a  question  of  size, 
should  we  not  proceed  to  measure  the  object,  and  so 
compose  our  difference  ? 

Euth.  Yes. 

Soc.  And  by  using  a  balance,  I  presume,  we  could 
settle  disputes  on  weights. 

Euth.  Of  course  we  could. 

Soc.  But  now  what  would  be  the  question  for  which  we 
could  find  no  test  and  which  would  make  us  enemies  ?  It 
may  not  be  obvious  to  you  at  once,  but  see  if  you  think  I 


20 


ΕΥΘΥΦΡ12Ν 


7  D  λέγοντος  σκοπεί,  ει  τάδ’  εστι  τδ  re  δίκαιον  και  τδ  άδικον 
καί  καλόν  καί  αισχρόν  καί  αγαθόν  καί  κακόν,  άρ  ου  ταυτα 
εστι,  περί  ων  διενεχθέντες  καί  ου  δυνάμενοι  επί  ικανήν 
κρίσιν  αυτών  ελθε ΐν  εχθροί  άλληλοις  γιγνόμεθα,  όταν  γι- 
γνωμεθα,  καί  εγώ  καί  συ  καί  οι  άλλοι  άνθρωποι  πάντες ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ’  εστιυ  αυτή  η  διαφορά,  ώ  ^ωκρατες,  καί 
περί  τούτων. 

2Ω.  Τί  δε  ;  οι  θεοί,  ω  Ε  υθυφρον,  ουκ  είπερ  τι  δια  φέρον¬ 
ται,  δι  αυτά  ταΐιτα  δια φεροιντ’  αν  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πολλή  ανάγκη. 

7  Ε  5Ω.  Καί.  των  θεών  άρα,  ω  γενναίε  Ε  υθυφρον,  άλλοι 
άλλα  δίκαια  ηγούνται  κατά  τον  σον  λόγον,  καί  καλά  καί 
αισχρά  καί  αγαθά  καί  κακά’  ου  γάρ  άν  που  εστα σίαζον 
άλληλοις  ει  μη  περί  τούτων  διεφεροντο.  η  γάρ  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Όρθως  λέγεις. 

2Ω.  Ουκουν  άπερ  καλά  ηγούνται  έκαστοι  καί  αγαθά  καί 
δίκαια,  ταυτα  καί  φιλοΐισι,  τά  δε  εναντία  τούτων  μισοΰσιν ; 
ΕΥΘ.  Πανυ  γε. 

2Ω.  Ταυτα  δε  γε,  ώ?  συ  φης,  οί  μεν  δίκαια  ηγούνται,  οι 
8  Α  δε  άδικα’  περί  ά  καί  άμφισβητουντες  στασιάζουσι  τε  καί 
πολεμουσιν  άλληλοις.  άρ  ουχ  ούτως  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ούτως. 

2Ω.  Ταυτα  άρα,  ώς  έοικε,  μισείται  τε  υπό  των  θεών  καί 
φιλείται,  καί  θεομιση  τε  καί  θεοφιλή  ταυτ  άν  εΐη. 

ΕΥΘ  Έοικευ. 

2;Ω.  Και  όσια  αρα  και  ανοσία  τα  αυτα  αν  ειη,  ω 
Ε  υθυφρον,  τουτω  τω  λόγω. 

ΕΥΘ.  Κινδυνεύει. 

IX.  2Ω.  Ουκ  άρα  δ  ηρόμην  άπεκρίνω,  ω  θαυμάσιε,  ου 


EUTHYPHRO 


21 


am  right  in  saying  that  such  questions  are  the  questions  of  7  D 
right  and  wrong,  beauty  and  ugliness,  good  and  evil  ? 

Are  not  these  the  matters  on  which  we  disagree,  and  for 
which  we  can  find  no  sure  criterion,  and  which  make  us 
enemies,  you  and  me  and  all  men, — if  enemies  we  are  ? 

Euth.  True,  Socrates,  there  is  such  a  difference  of 
opinion,  and  it  is  on  such  matters. 

Soc.  Well,  now,  Euthyphro,  surely  if  the  Gods  have 
differences  at  all  it  must  be  here  that  they  differ  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  most  certainly. 

Soc.  Then  the  Gods,  like  us,  my  friend,  according  to  7  E 
what  you  say,  vary  in  what  they  hold  to  be  right  and 
beautiful  and  good.  For  most  assuredly  they  would  not 
quarrel  with  each  other  if  they  did  not  differ  about  these 
things.  Is  that  not  true  ? 

Euth.  Quite  true. 

Soc.  Now  what  each  of  them  believes  to  be  beautiful 
and  good  and  right,  that  he  will  love,  and  he  will  loathe 
the  opposite  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  certainly. 

Soc.  Yes,  but  according  to  you,  one  and  the  same  thing 
is  considered  right  by  some  and  wrong  by  others  ;  and  8  A 
over  this  they  fight,  and  quarrel  with  each  other  and  go  to 
war,  do  they  not  ? 

Euth.  They  do. 

Soc.  Then  the  same  thing,  it  would  appear,  is  at  once 
hated  and  loved  by  the  gods,  and  would  be,  I  suppose, 
both  dear  to  them  and  loathed  by  them  ? 

Euth.  It  appears  so. 

Soc.  But  then  the  same  thing  would  be  at  once  holy  and 
unholy,  Euthyphro,  according  to  this  line  of  argument. 

Euth.  Perhaps  it  would. 

IX.  Soc.  Then,  my  dear  fellow,  you  cannot  have  answered 


22 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΙ2Ν 


γαρ  τοντο  ye  ηρωτων,  o  τυγχ avei  τ αυτόν  ον  όσιον  Τ'ε  καί 
άνόσιον'  ο  δ’  αν  θεοφιλές  η,  καί  θεομισές  εστιν,  ως  εοικεν. 

8  Β  ώστε,  ω  Ε υθυφρον,  δ  συ  νυν  ποιείς  τον  πατέρα  κολάζων, 
ουδέν  θαυμαστόν,  el  τούτο  όρων  τω  μέν  Διί  προσφιλές 
ποιείς,  τω  δε  Κρόνω  καί  τω  Ουρανω  εχθρόν,  καί  τω  μέν 
Ήφαιστω  φίλον,  τη  be  Ηρα  εχθρόν·  και  el  τις  άλλος  των 
0εών  έτερος  ετερω  διαφέρεται  περί  αυτόν,  καί  εκείνους  καταί 


ταυτά. 


ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ’  οιρ,αι,  ω  ^ώκρατες,  π€ρί  ye  τουτου  των  θεών 
ουοενα  ετερον  ετερω  όιαφερεσναι,  ως  ου  οει  οικην  οιοοναι 
εκείνον  δς  αν  αδίκως  τινά  α7 τοκτείνη. 

8  C  5Ω.  Τι  δε;  ανθρώπων,  ω  Ε υθυφρον,  ηδη  τίνος  ηκουσ ας, 
άμφισβητουντος  ως  τον  αδίκως  άποκτειναντα  τ)  άλλο  αδίκως 
ποίουντα  ότιουν  ου  δει  δίκην  διδόναι; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουδεν  μεν  ουν  παύονται  ταυτ’  αμφισβητούν τες 
καί  άλλοθι  καί  εν  τοΐς  δι καστηρίοις’  άδικουντες  γαρ  7τάρ- 
πολλα  πάντα  ποιουσι  καί  λέγουσι  φευγοντες  τήν  δίκην. 

2Ω.  Ή  καί  όμολογοΰσίν,  ω  Ε  υθυφρον,  άδικεΐν,  καί 
όμολογουντες  όμως  ου  δεΐν  φασί  σφάς  διδόναι  δίκην 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουδαμώς  τούτο  γε. 

2Ω.  Ουκ  αρα  παν  γε  ποιουσι  καί  λεγουσι.  τούτο  γάρ? 
οΐμαι,  ου  τολμωσι  λέγειν  ουδ’  άμφισβητείν,  ως  ουχί,  εΐπερ 
8  D  άδίκουσί  ye,  δοτέον  δίκην’  άλλ’,  οίμαι,  ου  φασίν  άδικείν. 
η  γάρ ;  γ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Άληθη  λέγεις. 

2Ω.  Ουκ  αρα  εκείνο  γε  άμφισβητ οΰσιν,  ως  ου  τον 
άδικουντα  δει  διδόναι  δίκην’  άλλ’  εκείνο  ίσως  άμφισ βητονσι, 
το  τις  έστιν  ό  άδικων  καί  τί  δρων  καί  ποτέ. 


EUTHYPHRO 


23 


what  I  asked.  I  did  not  want  to  know  what  happened  to 
be  at  once  holy  and  unholy,  but  what  is  dear  to  the  Gods 
is,  it  would  appear,  also  loathed  by  them ;  and  so,  my  friend,  8  B 
as  regards  your  present  action  in  punishing  your  father, 
there  would  be  nothing  surprising  if,  while  it  is  most  pleasing 
to  Zeus  it  is  most  hateful  to  Cronus  and  Uranus,  and  while 
it  is  dear  to  Hephaestus  it  is  loathed  by  Hera, — and  so 
with  the  rest  of  the  Gods,  if  they  happen  to  differ  about  it. 

Euth .  Well  but,  Socrates,  I  believe  none  of  them  will 
dispute  that  he  who  has  killed  a  man  unjustly  ought  to 
be  brought  to  justice. 

Soc.  Ah,  but,  Euthyphro,  even  among  men,  have  you  8  C 
ever  heard  it  denied  that  he  who  kills  a  man  unjustly, 
or,  indeed,  does  anything  unjust,  ought  to  be  brought  to 
justice  ? 

Euth.  Why,  they  constantly  deny  it,  especially  in 
court.  After  all  sorts  of  wickedness  they  will  say  and 
do  everything  to  escape  punishment. 

Soc.  Really,  Euthyphro  ?  Even  admit  they  have 
done  wrong  and  yet  assert  that  they  ought  not  to  be 
punished  ? 

Euth.  Oh,  no,  not  that  ;  they  always  stop  short  of 
that. 

Soc.  Then  it  is  not  everything,  after  all,  that  they  will 
say.  They  do  not  dare  to  maintain,  I  imagine,  that  if 
they  have  really  done  wrong  they  ought  not  to  be  punished. 

They  say,  I  fancy,  that  they  have  not  done  wrong,  do  8  D 

they  not  ? 

Euth.  They  do. 

Soc.  So  it  is  not  that  they  question  whether  the  wrong- 
/  doer  should  be  punished  ;  their  question  is  rather,  who  is 
the  wrong-doer,  and  what  makes  an  action  wrong  ? 


24 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΙ2Ν 


ΕΥΘ.  ’Αληθή  λέγεις. 

2Ω.  Ουκουν  αυτά  ye  ταΰτα  και  οί  θεοί  πεπόνθασιν, 
ίπερ  στ ασιάζονσι  περί  των  δίκαιων  και  αδίκων,  ως  δ  σδς 
λόγος,  και  οί  /χεν  φασιν  άλλήλους  άδικειν,  οί  δε  ον  φασιν  ; 

ϊ  VI"/  Ο/  Τ/Ί  /  J  Ο  \  V  /Ί  ~  ν 

€7Γ€ΐ  εκείνο  ye  οηπον ,  ω  σανμασιε,  ουοεις  ούτε  αεων  ούτε 

8  Ε  ανθρώπων  τολμά  λέγειν,  ως  ου  τω  ye  άδικονντι  δοτέον 

δίκην. 

ΕΥΘ.  Ναι,  τούτο  /χεν  άλτ^ες  λέγεις,  ω  ^ ωκρατες ,  το- ye 
κεφάλ  αιον. 

2Ω.  Άλλ;  έκαστον  ye,  οι/χαι,  ω  Ε νθνφρον,  των  πραχθέν- 
των  αμφισβητονσιν  οί  άμφισβητονντες,  καί  άνθρωποι  καί 
θεοί,  εΐ7 rep  άμφισβητονσ ι  θεοί ’  πράξεως  τίνος  πέρι  διαφε- 
ρόμενοι  οί  μεν  δικαίως  φασιν  αυτήν  πεπραχθαι,  οί  δε 

J  CN  /  'f  J  i  </ 

αοικως.  αρ  ονχ  όντως  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  ye. 

9  Ά-  X.  5Ω.  5/Ι0ι  τοινυν,  ω  φίλε  Ε  νθνφρον,  διδάχον  καί  εμέ, 

ΐνα  σοφωτερος  γένωμαι,  τι  σοι  τεκμήριόν  εστιν,  ως  7τάντες 
οί  #εοί  ηγούνται  εκείνον  αδίκως  τεθνάναι,  δς  αν  θητενων 
άνδροφόνος  γενόμενος,  ξννδεθείς  νπό  τον  δεσπότου  τον 
άποθα νόντος,  φθάση  τελεντήσας  διά  τά  δεσμά,  πριν  τον 
ξννοήσαντα  παρα  των  εξηγητών  περί  αντον  πνθέσθαι,  τι  χρή 
ποιείν'  καί  υπέρ  τον  τοιοντον  δη  δρθως  εχει  επεξιέναι  και 
έπισκήπτεσθαι  φόνον  τον  υιόν  τω  πατρί ;  ιθι,  περί  τοντωι 
9  Βττει ρω  τι  μοι  σαφές  ενδείξασθαι,  ως  παντός  μάλλον  πάντες 
οί  θεοί  ηγούνται  δρθως  εχειν  ταντην  ττ;ν  πραξιν.  καν  μο 
ίκανως  ένδειξη,  εγκωμ  ιάζων  σε  επί  σοφία  ουδέποτε 
πανσομαι. 

ΕΥΘ.  ;Αλλ’  ίσως  οΰκ  ολίγον  εργον  εστιν,  ω  "Χωκρατες ' 
έπεί  πάνν  γε  σαφώς  έχοιμι  αν  έπιδείξαί  σοι. 

2Ω.  Μανθάνω'  ότι  σοι  δοκω  των  δικαστών  δνσμα θέστερος 


EUTHYPHRO 


25 


Euth.  Very  true. 

t>  Soc.  Well  then,  the  Gods  are  in  just  the  same  position 
if  they  quarrel  over  right  and  wrong,  as  you  tell  me  they 
do,  some  saying  that  one  side  is  in  the  wrong  and  others 
that  it  is  not ;  for  most  assuredly,  my  friend,  neither 
God  nor  man  would  dare  to  say  that  the  wrong-doer  8  E 
should  not  be  brought  to  justice. 

Euth.  Yes,  Socrates,  you  are  right  in  that,  and  it  is  the 
main  point. 

Soc.  But  I  suppose,  Euthyphro,  that  every  detail  in 
what  occurred  is  argued  over  by  the  parties  to  the  dispute, 

1  among  Gods  as  well  as  men,  if  the  Gods  do  have  disputes. 

When  they  differ  about  an  action  some  say  that  it  was  right 
and  others  that  it  was  wrong.  Is  that  not  so  ? 

Euth.  Just  so. 

X.  Soc.  Well,  and  now,  dear  Euthyphro,  instruct  me  9  A 
too,  and  tell  me  for  my  greater  wisdom  what  proof  you  have 
'  that  all  the  Gods  will  consider  it  an  unjust  slaughter  if  the 
man  who  was  killed  was  a  hired  labourer  and  had  mur- 
•  dered  some  one  else,  and  been  put  in  chains  by  the 
murdered  man’s  master,  and  died  because  of  that,  before  the 
;  master  could  learn  from  the  Interpreters  what  he  ought  to 
do  :  and  that  this  is  the  sort  of  man  on  whose  behalf  a 
son  does  well  to  attack  his  father  and  prosecute  him  for 
murder.  Come  and  make  it  clear  to  me  that  all  the  Gods  9  B 
.  beyond  all  doubt  will  consider  this  action  right, — and  if 
;  you  really  prove  it  I  will  never  cease  to  extol  you  and 
your  wisdom. 

Euth.  But  it  is  no  slight  undertaking,  Socrates:  though, 
of  course,  I  could  prove  it  for  you  conclusively. 

Soc.  I  see :  you  think  me  slower  to  learn  than  your 


20 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡ12Ν 


αναι  €7τα  ckclvo ις  ye  ενοειξει  οηλον  οτι,  ως  αοικα  τ€  εστι 
καί  οΐ  θεοί  άπαντες  τα  τοιαντα  μισονσιν. 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  ye  σαφώς,  ώ  2$ ωκρατες ,  εάνπερ  άκονωσί  ye 
μου  λεγοντος. 

C  XI.  2Ω.  Άλλ’  άκονσοντα ι,  εάνπερ  εν  δοκης  λεγειν. 
τάδε  δε  σου  ενενόησα  άμα  λεγοντος,  καί  προς  εμαντόν 
σκοπώ'  ει  ο  τι  μάλιστα  με  Ε νθνφρων  διδάξειεν,  ως  οΐ  θεοί 
άπαντες  τον  τοιοΰτον  θάνατον  ηγούνται  άδικον  είναι,  τί 
μάλλον  εγω  μεμάθηκα  παρ’  Ε νθνφρονος,  τί  ποτ  εστι  το 
όσιόν  τε  και  το  άνόσιον ;  θεομισες  μεν  γα ρ  τοντο  το  εργον, 
ως  εοικεν,  εΐη  αν’  άλλα  γα  ρ  ον  τοΰτω  εφάνη  άρτι  ωρισμενα 
το  όσιον  και  μη’  το  yap  θεομισες  δν  και  θεοφιλίς  εφάνη. 
ώστε  τοντον  μεν  άφίημί  σε,  ω  Ε νθνφρον,  καί  εί  βονλει , 

D  πάντες  αντό  ηγείσθωσαν  θεοί  άδικον  καί  πάντες  μισονντων. 
άλλ’  αρα  τοντο  νυν  επανορθονμεθα  εν  τω  λδγω,  ως  δ  pel' 
αν  πάντες  οι  θεοί  μισωσιν,  άι /όσιόν  εστιν,  δ  δ’  αν  φιλωσιν, 
όσιον’  δ  δ’  αν  οι  μεν  φιλωσιν,  οι  δε  μισωσιν,  ονδετερα  η 
άμφότερα ;  άρ  οντω  βονλει  ημίν  ωρίσθαι  ννν  περί  τον 


όσιον  καί  τον  άνοσίον ; 


ΕΥΘ.  Τι  γα  ρ  κώλυα,  ώ  'Χωκρατες ; 

2Ω.  Ονδεν  εμε  ye,  ώ  Ε  νθνφρον'  αλλά  συ  δη  τό  σόν 
σκό πει,  ει  τοντο  νποθεμενος  οντω  ραστά  με  διδάξεις  δ 
νπεσχον. 

Ε  ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ’  εγωγε  φαίην  αν  τοντο  είναι  τδ  όσιον,  δ  άν 
πάντες  οί  θεοί  φιλωσι,  καί  τό  εναντίον,  δ  αν  πάντες  οί  θεοί 
μισωσιν ,  άνόσιον. 


EUTHYPHRO 


27 


jury, — for  of  course  you  will  make  it  clear  to  them 
that  the  deed  was  unjust,  and  that  all  the  Gods  hate 
actions  of  the  kind. 

Euth.  Yes,  Socrates,  I  will  make  it  perfectly  clear,  if 
only  they  will  listen  to  my  speech. 

XI.  Soc.  Oh,  they  will  listen  if  they  think  you  a  good  9  C 
speaker.  But  I  have  just  noticed  something  in  what  you 
said,  and  I  keep  asking  myself :  Suppose  Euthyphro  were 
to  show  me  to  the  full  that  all  the  Gods  consider  a 
death  of  this  character  unjust,  should  I  have  learnt  any 
the  more  from  him  what  holiness  really  is,  and  unholiness  ? 

The  action  in  question  may  be,  and  very  likely  is,  hateful  to 
the  Gods.  But  that  is  not  enough.  And  even  this  defini¬ 
tion,  as  we  saw  just  now,  was  not  made  distinct,  since  what 
was  hateful  to  the  Gods  was  shown  to  be  dear  to  them  as 
well.  However,  I  will  let  you  off  this  point,  Euthyphro : 
and  we  will  admit  if  you  like  that  all  the  Gods  consider  9  E 
it  unjust  and  all  of  them  hate  it.  Shall  we  make  this 
correction  first,  and  say  that  what  all  the  Gods  hate  is 
unholy,  and  what  all  of  them  love  is  holy,  while  what  some 
love  and  some  hate  is  neither  holy  nor  unholy,  or  else  both 
at  once  ?  Are  you  prepared  to  accept  this  for  our 
definition  ? 

Euth.  Well,  Socrates,  is  there  any  reason  why  I  should 
not  ? 

Soc.  None,  so  far  as  I  am  concerned,  Euthyphro ;  but 
you  must  look  to  your  own  position  yourself,  and  see  if 
this  will  give  you  the  best  foundation  for  teaching  me 
what  you  promised. 

Euth.  Well,  I  am  quite  ready  to  say  that  holiness  is  9  E 
what  all  the  Gods  love,  and  that  its  opposite, — what 
all  the  Gods  hate, — is  unholiness. 


28 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡ12Ν 


2Ω.  Ο  νκονν  επισκοπωμεν  αν  τούτο,  ώ  Ε  νθνφρον,  ει 
καλώς  λεγεται ;  η  εωμεν,  και  ούτως  ημών  τε  αυτών  άπο- 
δεγωμεθα  και  των  άλλων,  εάν  μόνον  φη  τις  τι  εχειν  οντω, 
£νγχωρονντες  εχειν ;  τ)  σκε πτεον  τι  λεγει  6  λόγων; 

ΕΥΘ.  %κετττεον.  οίμαι  μεντοι  εγωγε  τούτο  νυνι  καλώς 
λεγεσθαι. 

XII.  ^Ω.  Τάχ’,  ώ  ’γαθε,  βελτων  εισόμεθα.  εννόησον 
I Ο  Α  γαρ  τδ  τοιδνδε.  αρα  τδ  όσων,  ότι  όσων  εστι,  φιλεΐται  υπδ 
τών  #εών,  τ)  οτι  φιλεΐται,  όσιόν  εστιν; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουκ  οιδ’  δ  τι  λεγεις,  ώ  ^ώκρατες. 

5Ω.  Άλλ’  εγώ  πειράσομαι  σαφεστερον  φράσαι.  λεγομεν 
τι  φερόμενον  καί  φερον  και  άγόμενον  και  αγον,  και  δρώ- 
μενον  και  όρων'  και  παντα  τα  τοιαντα  μανθάνεις  οτι  ετερα 

ϊ\\/\  5  V  \  Τ  '/ 

αλληλων  εστι  και  $  ετερα; 

ΕΥΘ.  *Εγωγε  μοι  δοκώ  μανθάνειν. 

2ίΩ.  Ο  νκοΐιν  και  φίλον  μενόν  τι  εστι,  και  τουτου  ετερον 
τδ  φιλούν; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πώς  γαρ  ον  ; 

ΙΟ  Β  ^Ω.  Λεγε  δτ;  /χοι,  7 νότερον  τδ  φερόμενον,  διότι  φερεται, 
φερόμενόν  εστιν ,  τ)  δι’  άλλο  τι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουκ,  αλλα  δια  τοΰτο. 

2ΐΩ.  Και  τδ  άγόμενον  δη,  διότι  άγεται,  και  τδ  όρωμενον , 
διότι  όραται  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

2Ω.  Ουκ  αρα  διότι  όρωμενον  γε  εστι,  δια  τούτο  όραται, 
αλλά  τουναντίον,  διότι  όραται,  δια  τούτο  όρωμενον'  ουδέ 
διότι  άγόμενον  εστι,  δια  τούτο  άγεται,  άλλα  διότι  άγεται, 
δια  τούτο  άγόμενον'  ουδέ  διότι  φερόμενον,  φερεται,  άλλα 
διότι  φερεται,  φερόμενον.  αρα  κατάδηλον,  ω  Ε  νθνφρον,  ό 


EUTHYPHRO 


29 


Soc.  Well,  shall  we  examine  this  now  we  have  got  it, 
and  see  if  it  is  satisfactory,  or  are  we  to  let  it  pass,  and 
go  on  accepting  from  ourselves  and  from  others,  sub¬ 
missively,  any  assertion  that  any  one  chooses  to  make  ? 
Should  we  not  always  test  what  is  stated  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  we  should.  But  I  do  think  this  statement 
is  sound. 

XII.  Soc.  Well,  my  friend,  we  shall  be  able  to  say  better 
soon.  Now  consider  this  question:  Is  holiness  loved  by  10  A 
the  Gods  because  it  is  holy,  or  is  it  holy  because  it  is  loved? 

Euth.  I  do  not  understand  you,  Socrates. 

Soc.  Well,  I  will  try  to  put  it  more  clearly.  Can  we 
not  speak  of  what  is  carried  and  of  what  carries,  of 
what  is  driven  and  what  drives,  of  what  is  seen  and 
what  sees  ?  You  understand,  do  you  not,  that  all  these 
differ  from  one  another,  and  how  they  differ  ? 

Euth.  Well,  I  fancy  I  understand. 

Soc.  Now  is  there  not  also  something  that  is  loved, 
and  again,  distinct  from  it,  the  lover  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  surely. 

Soc.  Tell  me  now,  is  the  thing  that  is  carried  just  what  10  B 
1  rt  is, — namely,  a  carried  thing, — because  it  is  carried  or 
lor  some  other  reason  ? 

Euth.  No,  just  because  of  that. 

Soc.  And  the  driven  thing  is  such  because  it  is  driven, 
and  the  seen  thing  is  such  because  it  is  seen  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  certainly. 

Soc.  It  is  not,  of  course,  seen  because  it  is  a  seen  thing, 

,>hut  on  the  contrary,  it  is  a  seen  thing  because  it  is  seen. 

So  again  it  is  not  carried  because  it  is  a  carried  thing,  it  is 
a  carried  thing  because  it  is  carried  ;  and  it  is  not  driven 
because  it  is  a  driven  thing,  it  is  a  driven  thing  because 


30 


ΕΥΘΥΦΡΩΝ 


IO  C  βούλομαι  λ  eye  tv ;  βούλομαι  Βε  τόδε,  on  et  τι  γίγνεται  η 
et  rt  πάσχα  τι,  ονχ  on  yiyvo/xevov  Ιστι,  γίγνεται,  άλλ’  ότι 
yiyverat,  γιγνό  μονόν  εστιν'  ovB’  on  πάσχον  εστι,  πάσχα, 
άλλ’  on  πάσχα,  πάσχον  εστιν.  η  ον  ξνγχωρεΐς  όντως ; 
ΕΥΘ.  ’’Eytoye. 

2Ω.  Ονκονν  και  το  φιλονμενον  r)  γιγνόμενόν  rt  εστιν  τ) 
πάσχον  τι  υπο  του  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  ye. 

2;Ω.  Και  τοντο  άρα  όντως  εχει,  ώσπερ  τα  πρότερα'  ονχ 
οτι  φιλονμενόν  εστι,  φιλεΐται  νπο  ων  φιλεΐται,  άλλ’  δτι 
φιλεΐται,  φιλονμενον. 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Ανάγκη. 

ioD  !§Ω.  Τι  Βη  ονν  λεγομεν  περί  τον  όσιον,  ω  Ε νθνφρον , 
άλλο  τι  φιλεΐται  νπο  θεών  πάντων,  ως  6  σος  λόγος  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ναι. 

2Ω.  *Αρα  διά  τοντο,  οτι  όσιόν  εστιν,  η  Βι  άλλο  τι; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ο νκ,  άλλα  διά  τοντο. 

2Ω.  Διότι  άρα  όσιόν  εστι,  φιλεΐται,  άλλ’  ονχ  ότι  φι* 
λεΐται,  διά  τοντο  όσιόν  εστιν ; 

ΕΥΘ.  ’’Εοικεν. 

^Ω.  ’Αλλά  μεν  Βη  διότι  ye  φιλεΐται  νπο  θεών,  φι· 
λονμενόν  εστι  και  θεοφιλές. 

ΕΥΘ.  Πώς  γάρ  ον  ; 

2Ω.  Ο  νκ  άρα  το  θεοφιλές  όσιόν  εστιν,  ω  Ε  νθνφρον- 
ουδέ  το  όσιον  Θεόφιλός,  ώς  συ  λεγεις,  άλλ’  ετερον  τοντο 
τουτου. 

ΙΟ  Ε  ΕΥΘ.  Πώς  δ?7,  ώ  Σωκρατες  ; 


EUTHYPHRO 


31 


it  is  driven.  Now,  Euthyphro,  is  my  meaning  getting  io  C 
clear  ?  What  I  mean  is,  that  whenever  an  object  becomes 
anything,  or  is  touched  in  any  way,  it  does  not  become 
something  because  it  is  a  thing  that  is  in  process  of  becom¬ 
ing,  but  it  is  a  thing  in  process  of  becoming  because 
it  becomes  something.  Nor  is  it  touched  because  it  is  a 
touched  thing  :  it  is  a  touched  thing  because  it  is  touched. 

Do  you  not  agree  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  I  do. 

Soc.  Well  now,  the  beloved  thing  is  either  something 
that  is  in  process  of  becoming,  or  something  that  is  touched 
by  something  else  ? 

Euth.  Most  certainly. 

Soc.  And  it  is  the  same  in  this  case,  is  it  not  ?  as  in  the 
others.  The  thing  is  not  loved  because  it  is  a  beloved 
thing ;  it  is  a  beloved  thing  because  it  is  loved. 

Euth.  Yes,  that  must  be  so. 

Soc.  Now,  Euthyphro,  what  shall  we  say  about  holi-ioD 
ness  ?  Just  that  it  is  loved  by  all  the  Gods,  as  you  tell  me  ? 

Euth.  Yes. 

Soc.  And  loved  simply  because  it  is  holy,  or  for  some 
other  reason  ? 

Euth.  No,  simply  because  of  that. 

Soc.  Then  it  is  loved  because  it  is  holy,  and  it  is  not 
holy  because  it  is  loved  ? 

Euth.  So  it  seems. 

Soc.  But,  now,  it  is  because  it  is  loved  by  the  Gods 
that  it  is  a  thing  beloved  by  them  and  dear  to  them. 

Euth.  No  doubt. 

Soc.  Then,  Euthyphro,  what  is  dear  to  the  Gods  is  not 
the  same  as  holiness,  as  you  assert :  the  two  are  quite  distinct. 

Euth.  How  do  you  make  that  out,  Socrates  ?  το  E 


32 


ΕΤΘΥΦΡΩΝ 


3Ω.  Οτι  ό  μολογουμεν  τό  μεν  οσιον  δια  τούτο  φιλεΐσθαι, 
δτι  όσιόν  εστιν,  άλλ’  ου  διότι  φιλεΐται ,  οσιον  είναι.  ή  γάρ ; 
ΕΥΘ.  Nat. 

XIII.  ]§Ω.  To  δε  ye  θεοφιλές  οτι  φιλεΐται  υπό  θεών, 
αντίο  τοντω  τω  φίλε ΐσθαι  θεοφιλές  είναι,  άλλ’  ονχ  οτι 
θεοφιλές,  δια  τούτο  φιλεΐσθαι. 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Αληθή  λέγεις. 

2ΐΩ.  Άλλ’  εΐ  ye  ταυτόν  ήν,  ω  φίλε  Ε υθυφρον,  τό  θεο- 

I  1  Α  φίλες  και  τό  οσιον,  εί  μεν  δια  τό  οσιον  είναι  εφιλεΐτο  τό 

οσιον,  και  δια  τό  θεοφιλές  είναι  εφιλεΐτο  αν  τό  θεοφιλές ’  ει 
δε  δια  τό  φιλεΐσθαι  υπό  θεών  τό  θεοφιλές  θεοφιλές  ήν, 
και  το  οσιον  αν  όια  το  φιλεισσαι  οσιον  ην.  νυν  οε  ορας  οτι 
έναντίως  εχετον,  ως  παντάπασιν  ετέρω  όντε  άλλήλων.  τό  μέν 
yap,  οτι  φιλεΐται,  εστιν  οιον  φιλεισσαι  το  ο  οτι  εστιν  οι  ον 
φιλεΐσθαι,  δια  τούτο  φιλεΐται.  και  κινδυνεύεις,  ω  Ε υθυφρον, 
έρωτωμενος  τό  όσιον,  ο  τι  ποτ’  έστι,  τήν  μέν  ουσίαν  μοί 
αυτόν  ον  βουλεσθαι  δηλωσαι,  πάθος  δέ  τι  περί  αυτοί)  λέγειν, 

II  Β  ο  τι  πέπονθε  τούτο  τό  όσιον,  φιλεΐσθαι  υπό  πάντων  θεών’  ό 

τι  δέ  όν,  ουπω  είπες,  εί  ουν  σοι  φίλον,  μή  με  απόκρυφη,  αλλά 
πάλιν  είπέ  έξ  αρχής,  τι  ποτέ  όν  τό  όσιον  είτε  φιλεΐται  υπό 
θεών  είτε  ότιδή  πάσχει'  ου  yap  περί  τούτον  διοισόμεθα. 
άλλ’  είπέ  προθνμως ,  τι  έστι  τό  τε  όσιον  και  το  άνόσιον  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ’,  ω  ^ ωκρατες ,  ουκ  εχω  έγωγε  όπως  σοι 
είπω  δ  νοώ*  περιέρχεται  γάρ  πως  ήμΐν  αεί  δ  αν  προθωμεθα, 
και  ουκ  εσελει  μενειν  οπον  αν  ιόρυσωμεσα  αυτό. 

2Ω.  Του  ή  μετέρον  προγόνου,  ω  Ε  υθυφρον,  έοικεν  είναι 

1 1  C  Δαιδάλου  τα  υπό  σου  λεγόμενα.  καί  εί  μεν  αυτά  εγώ  ελεγον 


EUTHYPHRO 


33 


Soc.  Because  we  agreed  that  holiness  is  loved  just  because 
it  is  holy,  and  not  that  it  is  holy  because  it  is  loved.  Did 
we  not  ? 

Euth.  Yes. 

XIII.  Soc.  And,  moreover,  that  what  is  dear  to  the 
Gods  is  dear  to  them  just  through  being  loved,  just  because 
they  love  it,  and  not  that  it  is  loved  because  it  is  dear  to  them. 

Euth.  You  are  quite  right. 

Soc.  Now  you  see,  my  friend,  if  holiness  and  what  is 
dear  to  the  Gods  meant  exactly  the  same,  then,  since 
holiness  was  loved  because  it  was  holy,  what  is  dear  to  π  A 
the  Gods  would  have  been  loved  because  it  was  dear,  and 
holiness  would  have  been  holy  because  it  was  loved.* 

But  now,  you  perceive,  the  contrary  is  the  case, — and  the 
two  things  are  entirely  distinct.  One  is  lovable  because 
it  is  loved,  the  other  is  loved  because  it  is  lovable.  I 
fear,  Euthyphro,  that  when  I  asked  you  what  holiness 
was,  you  did  not  choose  to  show  me  its  real  nature.  You 
would  only  tell  me  something  that  happens  to  it,  and  that 
was,  that  it  is  loved  by  all  the  Gods:  what  it  is  in  itself  u  B 
you  have  not  told  me  yet.  Now,  if  you  will  be  so  kind, 
do  not  hide  it  from  me,  but  begin  once  more  from  the 
beginning  and  tell  me  what  holiness  can  be  ;  it  may  be 
loved  by  the  Gods  or  not ;  we  will  not  quarrel  over  what 
happens  to  it.  Tell  me,  and  tell  me  willingly,  what  is 
holiness  and  what  is  unholiness  ? 

Euth.  But,  Socrates,  I  really  do  not  know  how  to  tell 
you  what  I  think.  Whatever  we  set  up  seems  somehow 
to  move  away  :  it  refuses  to  stay  where  we  put  it. 

Soc.  Why,  Euthyphro,  that  sounds  as  though  your 
theories  were  the  work  of  my  ancestor  Daedalus.  Now  1 1  C 

*  Because  “  iuhat  is  dear  to  the  Gods”  could  be  substituted  for 
“  holiness  ”  and  “  holy  ”  in  the  first  statement  (1.  i),  and  “  holiness  ” 
and  “  holy"  for  “  ivhat  is  dear  to  the  Gods ”  and  “  dear ”  in  the 

second  (1.  5). 

D 


V 


34 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΧ2Ν 


καί  ετιθεμην,  ίσως  αν  με  επεσκω πτες,  ως  αρα  καί  εμοί  κατά 
την  εκείνον  ^υγγενειαν  τα  εν  τοΐς  λόγο ις  έργα  αποδιδράσκει 
και  ουκ  εθελει  μενειν  οπού  αν  τις  αυτά  θη’  νυν  δε — σαί 
γαρ  αΐ  νποθεσεις  εΐσίν’  άλλου  δ^  τινο?  δει  σκώμματος,  ου 
γαρ  εθελονσί  σοι  μενειν ,  ως  και  αΰτω  σοι  δοκεΐ. 

ΕΥΘ.  Έ/χοί  δε  δοκεΐ  σχεδόν  τι  του  αΰτου  σκώμματος,  ώ 
"Χώκρατες,  δεΐσθαι  τα  λεγάμενα’  το  γαρ  περιιεναι  αυτοί? 
τούτο  και  /χή  μενειν  εν  τω  αντω  ουκ  εγώ  ειμι  6  εντιθείς,  άλλα 

1 1  D  συ  μοι  δοκεΐς  6  Δαίδαλο?,  επεί  εμον  γε  ενεκα  εμενεν  άν 
ταΰτα  όντως. 

V*  Τ Τ  Ο  /  V  Τ  <  ^  9/ 

Δ12.  Κινουνευω  αρα,  ω  εταίρε,  εκείνον  τον  ανόρος  δεινό¬ 
τερος  γεγονεναι  την  τέχνην  τοσοντω,  όσω  6  μεν  τα  αντου 
μόνα  εποίει  ον  μενοντα,  εγώ  δε  προς  τοΐς  εμαντον,  ώς  εοικε, 
και  τα  άλλότρια.  και  δητα  τοντό  μοι  της  τέχνης  εστι  κομψό- 
τα τον,  ότι  ακων  ειμι  σοφός’  εβονλόμην  γαρ  αν  μοι  τού? 

.dh  · 

λόγονς  μενειν  και  άκινητως  ιδρνσθα ι  μάλλον  η  προς  τη 

1 1  Ε  Δαιδάλου  σοφία  τα  Ταντάλου  χρήματα  γενεσθαι.  και 

τούτων  μεν  άδην.  επειδή  δε  μοι  δοκέ Γ?  συ  τρνφαν,  αυτός 
σοι  ξνμπροθνμήσομ αι  δει£αι,  οπω?  άν  με  διδάξαις  περί  τον 
όσιον  και  μη  προαποκάμης.  ί δε  γάρ’  ονκ  άναγκαΐόν  σοι 
δοκεΐ  δίκαιον  είναι  παν  τό  όσιον ; 

ΕΥΘ.  ,ΛΕ/χοιγε. 

m  Άρ’  ονν  και  παν  τό  δίκαιον  όσιον ;  η  το  μεν  όσιον 

1 2  Α  παν  δίκαιον,  τό  δε  δίκαιον  ον  παν  όσιον,  άλλα  τό  μεν  αυτόν 

όσιον,  τό  δε  τι  και  άλλο  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ονχ  έπομαι,  ώ  Σώκρατες,  τοΐς  λεγομενοις. 

2Ω.  Καί  μην  νεώτερός  γε  μον  ει  ουκ  ελαττον  η  όσω  ■ 
σοφώτερος’  άλλ’,  ο  λέγω,  τρνφας  υπό  πλούτον  της  σοφίας- 


ύ 


EUTHYPHRO 


35 


had  it  been  I  who  brought  them  forward  and  set  them  up, 
you  might  well  have  laughed  at  me  for  the  family  likeness 
you  saw,  telling  me  that  my  works  of  art  in  the  world  of 
thought  insisted  on  moving  like  his  and  refused  to  stay 
where  they  were  put.*  But  the  theories,  you  see,  are  yours, 
so  we  must  find  some  other  jest.  They  certainly  do 
refuse  to  stand  where  you  wish,  as  you  yourself  can  see. 

Euth.  What  I  do  see,  Socrates,  is  that  the  jest  seems 
quite  in  place.  Their  shifting  and  changing  is  none  of 
my  doing  ;  it  is  yours ;  you  are  our  Daedalus.  They  1 1  D 
would  have  stayed  quite  quiet  had  it  only  depended  on  me. 

Soc.  Then,  my  friend,  I  must  think  myself  so  much  the 
better  artist  than  that  great  man,  inasmuch  as  he  only  made 
his  own  works  move,  but  I,  it  appears,  can  give  this  power 
to  the  works  of  others  too.  And  the  most  wonderful  part 
of  it  all  is  that  I  am  a  genius  against  my  will.  I  would  rather 
have  fixed  our  arguments  on  a  base  that  could  never  be 
shaken  than  gain  all  the  skill  of  Daedalus  and  all  the 
wealth  of  Tantalus  to  boot.  But  enough  of  this.  Since  1 1  E 
I  see  you  think  yourself  above  the  work,  1  will  make  bold 
to  suggest  a  way  myself  for  you  to  teach  me  about  holiness 
without  tiring  yourself  out  before  we  have  done.  Think 
now,  and  tell  me  if  it  does  not  seem  clear  to  you  that  all 
holiness  must  be  righteous  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  it  does. 

Soc.  Well  now,  is  all  righteousness  holy,  or  is  it  that  all 
holiness  is  righteous,  but  not  all  righteousness  holy,  part  of  12  A 
it  being  holy  and  part  something  else  ? 

Euth.  I  do  not  follow  you,  Socrates. 

Soc.  What,  and  you  as  much  younger  than  me  as  you 
are  wiser  !  Why,  it  is  just  as  I  say,  your  wealth  of 
wisdom  makes  you  far  too  proud  to  work.  But  gird  up 

*  See  Note  3. 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΩΝ 


36 

άλλ’,  ω  μακάριε,  ξνντεινε  σαυτόν*  και  yap  ουδέ  χαλεπόν 
κατανοήσαι  ο  λέγω,  λέγω  yap  δή  τδ  ενάντιον  ή  6  ποιητής 
εποίησεν  6  ποιήσας 

Ζήνα  δε  τον  θ’  ερξαντα,  και  ος  τάδε  πάντ  εφντενσεν, 
1 2  Β  ονκ  εθελεις  ειπεΐν’  ΐνα  yap  δέος,  ένθα  και  αιδώς. 

εγώ  ονν  τον τω  διαφερομαι  τω  ποιητή,  εΐπω  σοι  όπη ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

25Ω.  Ον  δοκέ ΐ  μοι  είναι  ΐνα  δέος  ένθα  καί  αιδώς*  πολλοί 
yap  μοι  δοκονσι  καί  νόσους  και  πενίας  και  άλλα  πολλά 
τοιαυτα  όεόιοτες  όεοιεναι  μεν,  αιοεισυαι  όε  μηοεν  ταντα  a 

&  $/  3  \  V  Ο,  λ 

οεοιασιν.  ον  και  σοι  όοκει ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

^Ω.  Άλλ’  Γνα  γε  αιδώς,  εν0α  και  δέος  είναι*  επεί  εστιν 
οστις  αίδονμενός  τι  πράγμα  και  αι σχννόμενος  ον  πεφόβηταί 
1 2  C  τε  και  δεδοικεν  άμα  δόξαν  πονηριάς ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Δε'δοικε  μεν  ονν. 

5Ω.  Οΰκ  up’  ορθώς  έχει  λεγειν*  Γνα  γάρ  δέος ,  ένθα  καί 
αιδώς’  άλλ’  Γνα  μεν  αιδώς,  ένθα  καί  δέος,  ον  μεντοι  Ϊνα  γε 
εος,  πανταχον  αιοως.  επι  πλέον  yap  οιμαι  οεος  αιόους 
μόριον  γάρ  αιδώς  δεονς,  ώσπερ  αριθμόν  περιττόν,  ώστε  ουχ 
ΐνα  περ  αριθμός,  ένθα  καί  περιττόν,  ΐνα  δε  περιττόν,  ένθα 
καί  αριθμός,  επει  γάρ  πον  νυν  γε  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

3Ω.  Τδ  τοιοντον  τοινυν  καί  εκεί  λεγων  ήρώτων,  άρα  ΐνα 
I  2  D  δίκαιον,  ένθα  καί  όσιον,  ή  ΐνα  μεν  όσιον,  ένθα  καί  δίκαιον, 


EUTHYPHRO 


37 


your  loins,  my  friend  :  there  is  really  nothing  difficult  to 
understand  in  my  words.  What  I  say  is  the  exact  reverse 
of  what  the  poet  said  when  he  wrote : 

“  Zeus,  the  maker  and  father  of  all, 

You  would  not  utter  his  name  : 

Where  there  is  fear  and  trembling,  12  B 

Follow  reverence  and  shame.” 

Now  here  I  differ  from  the  poet.  Shall  I  tell  you  how  ? 

Euth.  Please  do. 

Soc, .  I  do  not  think  that  wherever  there  is  fear  there  is 
shame.  I  think  a  great  many  people  who  are  afraid  of 
sickness  and  poverty  and  similar  evils  arc  certainly  afraid, 
but  feel  no  shame  before  the  things  they  fear.  Do  not 
you  think  so  too  ? 

Euth .  Indeed  I  do. 

Soc.  But  wherever  there  is  shame  there  is  certainly  fear. 

Is  there  any  man  who  could  be  ashamed  of  an  action  and 
shrink  from  doing  it,  and  yet  not  fear  the  charge  of  1 2  C 
wickedness  and  be  afraid  of  that  ? 

Euth.  No,  of  course  he  would  be  afraid. 

Soc.  Then  it  is  not  right  to  say  “  where  there  is  fear 
follows  shame.”  Wherever  there  is  shame  it  is  true  there 
is  fear,  but  where  there  is  fear  there  is  not  always  shame. 

Fear,  I  hold,  is  a  wider  term  than  shame;  shame  is  a 
species  of  fear,  as  odd  number  is  a  species  of  number  ; 
and  so,  where  there  is  number  there  is  not  always  odd 
number,  but  wherever  there  is  odd  number  there  is  always 
number.  Now,  I  think,  you  follow  me  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  perfectly. 

Soc.  Well,  it  was  just  this  sort  of  thing  I  meant  when  I 
asked  you  a  moment  ago  whether  there  was  holiness  wher¬ 
ever  there  was  righteousness  ;  or  whether,  though  there  was 
righteousness  wherever  there  was  holiness,  there  was  not  12  D 


3» 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΩΝ 


Γνα  δε  δίκαιον,  ον  πανταχον  όσων'  μόρων  γαρ  του  δίκαιου 
τδ  όσων,  οντω  φωμεν,  η  άλλως  σοι  δοκει; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ουκ,  άλλ’  οντω'  φαίνει  yap  μοι  όρθως  λεγειν. 

ΧΙΥ.  m  "Ορα  δη  το  μετά  τούτο,  εΐ  yap  μέρος  το 
όσων  τον  δίκαιον ,  δει  δη  ημάς ,  ώς  εοικεν,  εζενρεΐν  τδ  ποιον 
μέρος  αν  είη  τον  δικαίου  το  όσων,  εΐ  μεν  ουν  συ  με  ηρωτας 
τι  των  νυν  δη ,  οίον  ποιον  μέρος  εστίν  αριθμοί)  τό  άρτων  και 
τις  ων  τυγχάνει  οντος  ό  αριθμός ,  είπον  αν,  οτι  δς  αν  μη 
σκαληνός  η  άλλ’  ισοσκελής,  η  ον  δοκεΐ  σοι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Έ/χοιγε. 

2  Ε  22Ω.  Πειρώ  δη  και  συ  εμε  οντω  διδάζαι,  τό  ποιον  μέρος 

τον  δίκαιον  όσιόν  εστιν,  ΐνα  καί  Μελετώ  λεγωμεν  μηκεθ ’ 
ημάς  άδικεΐν  μηδε  άσεβείας  γράφεσθα ι,  ώς  ίκανως  ηδη  παρά 
σου  μεμα θηκότας  τά  τε  ευσεβή  καί  όσια  καί  τα.  μη. 

ΕΥΘ.  Τούτο  τοινυν  εμοιγε  δοκεΐ,  ω  ’Χωκρατες,  τό  μέρος 
του  δικαίου  είναι  ενσεβες  τε  καί  όσων,  τό  περί  την  των 
θεών  θεραπείαν'  τό  δε  περί  την  των  ανθρώπων  τό  λοιπόν 
είναι  τον  δικαίου  μέρος. 

XV.  ^Ω.  Και  καλώς  γε  μοι,  ω  Ε νθνφρον,  φαίνει  λεγειν. 

3  Α  άλλα,  σμικροΐ)  τίνος  ετι  ενδεής  είμι'  την  γαρ  θεραπείαν 

ονπω  ζννίημι  ηντινα  ονομάζεις,  ον  γάρ  πον  λεγεις  γε,  οίίαί 
περ  καί  αί  περί  τα.  άλλα  θεραπεΐαί  εισι,  τοιαντην  καί  περί 
θεονς.  λεγομεν  γάρ  πον — ,  οιον  φαμεν,  ίππους  ου  πας 
επίσταται  θεραπενειν,  άλλ’  ό  ιππικός,  η  γάρ ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 


EUTHYPHRO 


39 


always  holiness  wherever  there  was  righteousness.  For 
holiness  is  a  species  of  righteousness.  Now  shall  we 
admit  this,  or  do  you  think  otherwise  ? 

Euth.  No,  this  is  what  I  think.  It  seems  to  me  you 

are  quite  right. 

XIV.  Soc.  Then  see  what  follows.  If  holiness  is  a 
species  of  righteousness,  we  ought,  it  would  seem,  to  discover 
what  kind  of  species  it  is.  Suppose  you  had  asked  me 
about  the  subject  we  mentioned  just  now,  for  instance, 
what  species  of  number  even  number  was,  and  what  kind  of 
number  was  even,  I  should  have  replied : — every  number 
that  was  not  unequal  but  could  be  divided  by  two.*  Do 
you  not  agree  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  I  do. 

Soc.  Now  it  is  your  turn  to  try  and  teach  me  in  this  1 2  E 
way  what  part  of  righteousness  is  holy ;  and  then  I  can 
go  and  tell  Meletus  he  must  give  up  the  prosecution  and 
not  trouble  me  any  more  since  I  have  learnt  from  you  at 
last  all  about  piety  and  holiness. 

Euth.  Well,  Socrates,  this  is  my  answer  :  the  kind  of 
righteousness  that  I  call  pious  and  holy  is  the  kind  that 
has  to  do  with  the  care  of  the  Gods.  1  he  rest  has  to 
do  with  the  care  of  Man. 

XV.  Soc.  And  an  excellent  answer,  Euthyphro,  you 
seem  to  have  given  me.  But  there  is  one  small  thing  more  1 3  A 
I  want.  I  do  not  yet  understand  what  kind  of  care  you 
mean.  You  cannot,  of  course,  mean  just  the  same  care  as 

we  give  to  other  things ;  for  instance,  we  say  it  is  not 
every  one  who  understands  the  care  of  horses,  only  the 
horseman  ;  do  we  not  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  certainly  we  do. 


*  See  Note  4. 


40 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡ12Ν 


2Ω.  Ή  γάρ  π ου  ιππική  ίππων  θεραπεία  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Nat. 

2Ω.  ΟνΒε  yε  κυνας  πας  επίσταται  θεραπευειν ,  άλλ’  6 
κυνηγετικός. 

ΕΥΘ.  Ούτως. 

^Ω.  'Η  yap  που  κυνηγετική  κυνων  θεραπεία. 

13  Β  ΕΥΘ.  Nat. 

2Ω.  'Η  δε  βοηλατικη  βοών. 

ΕΥΘ.  ΐίάνυ  γε. 

2Ω.  'Η  δε  δη  όσιότης  τε  καί  ευσεβεια  θεών ,  ώ  Ε υθυφρον  ; 
ουτω  λεγεις ; 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Έγωγε. 

^Ω.  Ουκουν  θεραπεία  γε  πάσα  ταυτόν  διαπράττεται ; 
οιον  τοιόνδε'  επ’  άγαθω  τινί  εστι  καί  ωφελεί α  του  θερα¬ 
πευόμενου ,  ώσπερ  ορας  δη,  οτι  οι  ίπποι  υπό  της  ιππικής 
θεραπευόμενοι  ωφελούνται  και  βελτίους  γίγνοντ at.  η  ου 
δοκουσί  σοι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  νΕ μοιγε. 

2Ω.  Kat  ot  κυνες  γε  που  υπό  της  κυνηγετικής  και  οι 
1 3  C  βόες  υπό  της  βοηλατικης,  καί  ταλλα  πάντα  ωσαύτως*  η  επί 
βλάβη  οϊει  του  θεραπευόμενου  την  θεραπείαν  είναι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Μα  Δί’  ουκ  εγωγε. 

^Ω.  Άλλ’  επ’  ωφελεί a ; 


ΕΥΘ.  ΤΙως  δ’  ου; 

I 

2;Ω.  Η  ουν  καί  η  όσιότης  θεραπεία  ουσα  θεών  ωφελειά 
τε  εστι  θεών  καί  βελτίους  τους  θεούς  ποιεί ;  καί  συ  τούτο 
ζυγχωρησαις  αν,  ως  επειδάν  τι  οσιον  ποιης,  βελτίω  τινα. 
των  θεών  άπεργάζει ; 


EUTHYPHRO  41 

Soc.  For  the  horseman’s  work  is,  I  take  it,  the  care 
of  horses. 

Euth.  Yes. 

Soc.  Nor  does  every  one  understand  the  care  of  dogs, 
but  only  he  who  can  train  them. 

Euth.  Just  so. 

Soc.  The  work  of  such  a  trainer  being  the  care  of 
dogs  ? 

Euth.  Yes.  13  B 

Soc.  And  the  work  of  the  herdsman  the  care  of  cattle  ? 

Enth.  Precisely. 

Soc.  And  piety  and  holiness,  Euthyphro,  are  they 
nothing  more  nor  less  than  the  care  of  the  Gods  ?  Is  this 
what  you  say  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  it  is. 

Soc.  Now,  does  not  all  care  achieve  the  same  result? 

I  mean  it  always  brings  some  advantage  and  some  good  to 
the  object  of  the  care ;  we  see,  for  instance,  that  horses  get 
benefit  from  the  care  spent  on  them  and  become  better. 

Do  you  not  think  they  do  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  I  quite  think  so. 

Soc.  And  dogs  get  good  from  their  trainer’s  care  and 
cattle  from  their  herdsman’s,  and  so  with  all  the  rest;  13  C 
you  cannot  suppose  that  the  care  is  ever  for  the  disadvantage 
of  its  object  ? 

Euth.  No,  certainly  not. 

Soc.  It  is  for  its  benefit? 

Euth.  Yes,  of  course. 

Soc.  Well,  now,  if  holiness  is  the  care  of  the  Gods,  does 
that  mean  that  it  is  a  benefit  to  them  and  makes  them 
better?  Would  you  be  prepared  to  grant  that  whenever 
you  do  what  is  holy  you  make  one  of  the  Gods  better  ? 


42 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡίΙΝ 


ΕΥΘ.  Μα  Δί’  ουκ  εγωγε. 

ΑΩ.  Ουδέ  yap  εγώ,  ω  Ε νθνφρον,  οίμαί  σε  τούτο  Xiyf.LV' 
13  D  πολλου  καί,  δέω'  άλλα  τούτον  δη  ενεκα  καί  άνηρόμην,  τίνα 
7 τοτέ  λέγοις  τήν  θεραπείαν  των  θεών ,  οΰχ  ηγούμενός  σε 
τοιαντην  λέγειν. 

ΕΥΘ.  Καί,  όρθως  γε,  ω  ωκρατες '  ον  yap  τοιαντην 

λέγω. 

^Ω.  Ειεν'  άλλα  τις  δή  #εών  θεραπεία  είη  αν  η  όσιότης ; 

ΕΥΘ.  "ϊίνπερ,  ω  2 ωκρατες ,  οι  δούλοι  τους  δέσποτας 
θεραπενονσιν. 

^Ω.  Μανθάνω'  νπηρετικη  τις  αν ,  ώς  εοικεν,  είη  θεο Γς. 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  μεν  ow. 

XVI.  ^Ω.  'Εχοις  αν  ουν  είπεΐν,  η  Ιατροίς  νπηρετικη 
εις  τίνος  εργον  άπ εργασίαν  τυγχάνει  ονσα  νπηρετικη  ;  ονκ 
εις  υγιειας  οιει; 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Έγωγε. 

13  Ε  2Ω.  Τι  δε;  ή  νανπηγοίς  νπηρετικη  εις  τίνος  έργου 
άπεργ ασίαν  νπηρετικη  εστιν ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Δήλον  οτι,  ω  "^ωκρατες,  εις  πλοίου. 

ϋ£Ω.  Και  17  οικοδόμοις  γε'  που  εις  οικίας ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Ναι. 

^Ω.  Ειπέ  δτ^,  ώ  άριστε'  η  δε  θεοίς  νπηρετικη  εις  τίνος 
εργον  άπεργ  ασίαν  νπηρετικη  αν  είη;  δηλον  γάρ  ότι  σύ 
οίσθα,  επειδηπερ  τα  γε  θεία  κάλλιστά  γε  φης  ειδεναι 
άνθρωπων. 

ΕΥΘ.  Και  άληθη  γε  λέγω,  ω  ^ωκρατες. 

^Ω.  Ειπέ  δη  προς  Δ  ιός,  τι  ποτέ  εστιν  εκείνο  τό 
πάγκαλον  εργον,  δ  οι  θεοί  άπεργάζονται  ημίν  νπηρεταις 
χρωμενοι  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πολλά  καί,  καλά,  ω  ^ωκρατες. 


EUTHYPHRO 


43 


Euth.  Good  heavens  !  Of  course  not. 

Soc.  And  of  course,  Euthyphro,  I  did  not  think  you 
meant  that ;  far  from  it.  But  the  reason  I  asked  you  was  i 
to  find  out  what  kind  of  care  you  did  mean,  for  I  was 
sure  it  could  not  be  this. 

Euth.  Quite  right,  Socrates,  that  was  not  what  I  meant. 

Soc.  So  far  so  good  then  ;  but  now  tell  me,  what  kind 
of  care  is  it  ? 

Euth.  Why,  the  kind  that  slaves  give  to  their  masters. 

Soc.  I  understand  :  a  sort  of  service  to  them. 

Euth.  Exactly. 

XVI.  Soc.  Now  could  you  tell  me  what  is  the  aim  of 
the  service  that  a  doctor’s  servant  gives  ?  It  is  health, 
would  you  not  say  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  I  would. 

Soc.  Well,  and  a  shipbuilder’s  servant, — at  what  pro-  z 
duction  does  his  service  aim  ? 

Euth.  At  the  production  of  a  ship,  of  course. 

Soc.  And  service  to  a  builder  aims,  I  take  it,  at  a 
building  ? 

Euth.  Yes. 

Soc.  And  now,  my  friend,  tell  me,  finally,  about  the 
service  of  the  Gods, — what  is  the  work  at  which  it 
aims  ?  You  must  know,  I  am  sure,  for  you  told  me  that 
you  understood  religion  better  than  any  man. 

Euth.  And  what  I  said  was  quite  true,  Socrates. 

Soc.  Then  tell  me  at  last  what  that  glorious  work  can 
be  which  the  Gods  bring  into  being,  and  for  which  they 
use  our  service. 

Euth.  Their  works  are  many,  Socrates,  and  all  are 
good. 


44 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΧ2Ν 


14  A  Καί  γάρ  οί  στρατηγοί,  ω  φίλε'  άλλ’  όμως  το 

κεφάλαιον  αυτών  ραδίως  αν  είποις,  ότι  νίκην  iv  τω  πολεμώ 
απεργάζονται,  η  ου; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πώς  8’  ον  ; 

^Ω.  Πολλά  δε  γ’  οιμαι  και  καλά  και  οι  γεωργοί '  αλλ’ 
όμως  το  κεφάλαιον  αυτών  εστι  της  άπεργασίας  η  εκ  της 
γης  τροφή. 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

^Ω.  Ύί  δε  δη  των  πολλών  καί  καλών,  ά  οι  Θεοί  απεργά¬ 
ζονται  ;  τί  το  κεφάλαιον  εστι  της  άπεργασίας ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Καί  ολίγον  σοι  πρότερον  εΤπον,  ω  Ί&ωκρατες,  ότι 
1 4  Β  πλείονος  έργου  εστίν  ακριβώς  ταντα  πάντα,  ως  ^χει,  μαθείν' 
τάδε  μεντοι  σοι  απλώς  λέγω,  οτι,  εάν  μεν  κεχαρισμενα  τις 
επίστηται  τοίς  θεοίίς  λεγειν  τε  καί  πράττειν  ευχόμενος  τε  καί 
Θνων,  ταΰτ  εστι  τά  όσια,  καί  σώζει  τά  τοιαντα  τους  τε 
ίδιους  οίκους  καί  τά  κοινά  των  πόλεων'  τά  δ’  εναντία  των 
κεχαρισμενων  ασεβή,  ά  δη  καί  ανατρέπει  άπαντα  καί 
άπόλλνσιν. 

XVII.  2ΪΩ.  Ή  πολύ  μοι  διά  βραχύτερων,  ω  Ε νθνφρον, 
εί  εβουλον,  είπες  άν  το  κεφάλαιον  ων  ηρωτων.  αλλά  γάρ 
1 4  C  ου  πρόθυμός  με  εΐ  διδάζαι,  δηλος  εΐ.  καί  γάρ  νυν  επειδή 
επ’  αυτω  ησθα,  άπετράπον’  δ  εί  άπεκρίνω,  ίκανως  άν  ηδη 
παρά  σου  την  όσιότητα  εμεμαθηκη.  νυν  δε — ανάγκη  γάρ 
τον  ερωτωντα  τω  ερωτωμενω  άκολονθεΐν  όπη  άν  εκείνος 
νπάγη’  τί  δη  αυ  λεγείς  το  όσιον  είναι  καί  την  όσιότητα ; 
ουχί  επιστήμην  τινά  του  Θυειν  τε  καί  ευχεσθαι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  ,ΛΕγωγε. 


EUTHYPHRO 


45 


Soc.  True,  my  friend,  and  so  are  those  of  a  general.  14  A 
But  none  the  less  you  could  easily  sum  these  up  in  one, 
and  call  it  victory,  could  you  not? 

Euth.  Yes,  of  course. 

Soc.  And  a  farmer’s  works  are  many  and  good,  but 
still  the  sum  and  end  of  all  his  labour  is  the  produce  of 
the  ground. 

Euth.  Undoubtedly. 

Soc.  And  now  what  shall  we  say  of  all  the  good 
things  that  the  Gods  produce  ?  What  is  the  sum  of  their 
work  ? 

Euth.  I  told  you  a  moment  ago,  Socrates,  that  it  is 
harder  than  one  might  think  to  learn  the  absolute  truth 
about  these  things.  But  this  much  I  can  tell  you  in  so  14  B 
many  words :  if  a  man  can  say  and  do  what  is  grateful 
to  the  Gods  in  prayer  and  sacrifice,  there  we  have  holiness, 
and  it  is  this  that  preserves  the  Family  and  the  State,  and 
what  is  not  grateful  to  them  is  impious, — and  impiety 
overthrows  and  destroys  everything. 

XVII.  Soc.  Well,  Euthyphro,  you  could  have  told 
me  the  sum  of  what  I  asked  in  very  much  fewer  words, 
if  you  had  liked.  But  it  is  quite  plain  that  you  have  no  14  C 
wish  to  teach  me.  For  this  very  moment  when  you  had 
reached  the  point,  you  turned  aside  :  had  you  answered 
my  question  then,  I  should  have  learned  from  you  by  now 
all  I  wanted  to  know.  But  now,  since  the  questioner 
needs  must  follow  the  answerer  wherever  the  latter  leads, 

I  must  needs  ask  you  again,  what  do  you  say  is  holy  and 
what  is  holiness  ?  You  say  it  is  the  knowledge  of  how  to 
sacrifice  and  pray  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  I  do. 


46  ΕΥΘΥΦΡΩΝ 

25Ω.  Ο νκονν  τό  θνειν  δωρεΐσθαί  εστι  rots  θεοΐς,  το  δ’ 
ενχεσθαι  αίτεΐν  τους  θεούς. 

ΕΥΘ.  Καί  μάλα,  ω  5 ωκρατες . 

14D  2Ω.  ’Επιστήμη  αρα  αίτήσεως  και  δοσεω?  θεοΐς  ή  όσιότης 

αν  εΐη  εκ  τούτον  τον  λόγον. 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  καλώς ,  ώ  % ωκρατες ,  ξννήκας  ό  εΐπον. 

2Ω.  ’Επιθυμητής  γά ρ  είμι,  ω  φίλε ,  τής  σής  σοφίας,  καί 
προσέχω  τον  νονν  αντή,  ώστε  ον  χαμαί  πεσεΐται  ό  τι  αν 
ειπης.  αλλά  μοι  λ  εξόν,  τίς  αντη  ή  υπηρεσία  εστί  το ΐς 
θεοΐς;  αίτεΐν  τε  φής  αντονς  καί  διδόναι  εκείνοις; 

ΕΥΘ.  νΕγωγε. 

XVIII.  2Ω.  Άρ’  ονν  ον  τό  όρθως  αίτεΐν  αν  εΐη,  ων 
δεόμεθα  παρ’  εκείνων,  ταντα  αντονς  αίτεΐν  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Άλλα  τί; 

Ι4Ε  2Ω.  Και  αν  τό  8ιδόναι  όρθως,  ων  εκείνοι  τ νγχάνονσι 
δεόμενοι  παρ’  ήμων,  ταντα  εκείνοις  αν  άντιδωρεΐσθαι ;  ον 
γάρ  πον  τεχνικόν  γ’  αν  εΐη  δωροφορε ΐν  διδόντα  τω  ταντα, 
ων  ονοζν  όαταί. 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Αληθή  λεγεις,  ω  Ί&ώκρατες. 

2Ω.  ’Εμπορική  αρα  τις  αν  εΐη,  ω  Ε νθνφρον,  τέχνη  ή 
όσιότης  θεοΐς  καί  άνθρώποις  παρ’  αλλήλων. 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Εμπορική,  εί  όντως  ήδιόν  σοι  όνομάζειν. 

2Ω.  Άλλ’  ονδεν  ήδιον  εμοιγε,  εί  μή  τυγχάνει  αληθές 
ον.  φράσον  δε  μοι,  τίς  ή  ώφελεια  τοΐς  θεοΐς  τυγχάνει  ονσα 
από  των  δώρων  ων  παρ’  ήμων  λαμβάνονσιν ;  ά  μεν  γάρ 
διδόασι,  παντί  δήλον'  ονδεν  γάρ  ήμΐν  εστιν  αγαθόν,  ο 

15  Art  άν  μή  εκείνοι  δωσιν'  ά  δε  παρ’  ήμων  λαμβάνονσι,  τί 
ωφελούνται ;  ή  τοσοντον  αυτών  πλεονεκτονμεν  κατά  τήν 
εμπορίαν,  ώστε  πάντα  τάγαθά  παρ’  αυτών  λαμβά νομεν, 
εκείνοι  όε  παρ  ημών  ονοεν ; 


EUTHYPHRO 


47 

Soc.  Now  to  sacrifice  is  to  offer  something  to  the  Gods 
and  to  pray  is  to  ask  them  for  something. 

Euth.  Most  certainly. 

Soc.  Then  according  to  this  definition,  holiness  would  14  D 
be  the  science  of  requests  and  offerings  to  the  Gods. 

Euth.  You  have  understood  my  meaning  perfectly. 

Soc.  Because  I  thirst  for  your  wisdom,  my  friend,  and 
I  wait  and  watch,  so  that  no  word  of  yours  falls  to  the 
ground.  But  tell  me  once  more,  what  is  this  service  to 
the  Gods  ?  A  service  of  requests  and  offerings  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  that  is  what  I  say. 

XVIII.  Soc.  Well,  and  to  ask  aright  would  be,  would  it 
not,  to  ask  them  for  what  we  need  ? 

Euth.  What  else  ? 

Soc.  And  on  the  other  hand  to  give  aright  would  be  to  14  E 
give  them  what  they  need  in  their  turn.  For  certainly  it 
would  not  show  much  intelligence  to  bring  gifts  that  were 
not  wanted  at  all. 

Euth.  Very  true. 

Soc.  In  short,  Euthyphro,  we  may  call  holiness  the  art 
of  bargaining  between  Gods  and  men. 

Euth.  Yes,  a  kind  of  bargaining,  if  it  gives  you  pleasure 
to  call  it  so. 

Soc.  No  pleasure  to  me,  unless  it  happens  to  be  true. 

But  now  will  you  show  me  what  benefit  accrues  to  the 
Gods  from  the  gifts  we  give  them?  What  they  give  us  is 
plain  to  every  one ;  there  is  no  good  thing  we  have  that  is  1 5  A 
not  their  gift.  But  what  they  get  from  us, — how  do  they 
benefit  from  that  ?  Are  we  so  much  the  more  grasping  that 
we  get  all  good  from  them,  and  they  get  nothing  from  us  ? 


48 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΏΝ 


ι5  Β 


ΕΥΘ.  Άλλ’  οΐει,  ώ  ^ώκρατες,  τους  θεονς  ώφελείσθαι 
άπο  τούτων,  α  παρ’  ημών  λαμβάνονσιν  ; 

^Ω.  Άλλα  τι  δηποτ  αν  ειη  ταΰτα,  ω  Ε νθνφρον,  τα 
παρ’  ημών  δώρα  τοΐς  θεοίίς  ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Τι  δ’  οία  άλλο  τ)  τιρ.·^  τε  καί  γέρα  καί  οπερ  εγώ 
άρτι  ελεγον,  χάρις; 

2Ω.  Κεχαρισρ,εΥον  άρα  εστΐν,  ώ  Ε  νθνφρον,  το  οσιον, 
άλλ’  οΰχί  ωφέλιμον  ονδέ  φίλον  τοΐς  #εοΐς ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Οίμαι  εγωγε  πάντων  γε  μάλιστα  φίλον. 

ΓΓ\  *  V  J  5  \  Τ  €  V  \  «V  \ 

2,12.  Ιουτο  αρ  €σπν  αν ,  ως  €Oikc,  το  οσιον,  το  τοις  οβοις 


φίλον. 

ΕΥΘ.  Μάλιστα  γε. 

XIX.  2Ω.  Θαυμάσει  ουν  ταυτα  λεγων,  εάν  σοι  οί  λόγοι 
φαίνωνται  μη  μένοντες  άλλα  βαδίζοντες,  καί  εμέ  αίτιάσει 
τον  Δαίδαλον  βαδίζοντας  αΰτους  ποιεΐν,  αΰτδς  ων  πολύ 
γε  τεγνικωτερος  τον  Δαιδάλου  καί  κύκλω  περιιόντας  ποιων ; 
η  οΰκ  αισθάνει,  ότι  υ  λόγος  7;μΐν  περιελθων  πάλιν  εις 
1  5  C  ταυτόν  τ;κει ;  μέμνησαι  γάρ  που,  ότι  εν  τω  έμπροσθεν  τό 
τε  όσιον  καί  τό  θεοφιλές  ον  ταυτόν  ημΐν  έφάνη ,  άλλ’  ετερα 
άλληλων.  η  ον  μέμνησαι ; 

ΕΥΘ.  ΐΕγωγε. 

2Ω.  Νυν  ουν  οΰκ  εννοείς ,  ότι  τό  τοΐς  0εοΐς  φίλον  φης 
οσιον  είναι ;  τούτο  ο  άλλο  τι  η  υεοφιλες  γιγνεται ;  η  ον ; 

ΕΥΘ.  Πάνυ  γε. 

5Ω.  Ουκουν  τ)  άρτι  ον  καλώς  ώμολογοΰμεν,  η  εί  τότε 
καλώς,  νυν  οΰκ  ορθως  τιθέμεθα. 

ΕΥΘ.  ’Έοικεν. 


EUTHYPHRO 


49 

Euth.  But  do  you  really  think,  Socrates,  that  the  Gods 
are  benefited  by  what  they  take  from  us  ? 

Soc.  Well,  Euthyphro,  if  not,  what  can  these  gifts  of 
ours  be  ? 

Euth.  What  but  reverence,  and  honour,  and,  in  a  word, 
gratefulness,  as  I  said  just  now  ?  What  else  do  you  expect  ? 

Soc.  So  then,  Euthyphro,  holiness  is  grateful  to  the  15  B 
Gods,  but  not  useful  or  pleasing  to  them. 

Euth.  Why  no,  I  think  most  certainly  it  is  pleasing 
to  them. 

Soc.  Then  we  come  back  again,  it  seems,  to  saying  that 
holiness  is  what  is  pleasing  to  the  Gods. 

Euth.  Most  decidedly. 

XIX.  Soc.  Can  you  wonder  after  this  if  you  see  that 
your  theories  will  not  stand  ?  Can  you  accuse  me  of 
being  the  Daedalus  who  sets  them  walking,  when  all  the 
while  you  are  much  cleverer  than  he  and  make  them  move 
round  yourself?  Do  you  not  see  that  the  argument  has 
come  right  round  to  the  very  same  place  as  before  ?  You 
remember,  surely,  that  we  have  already  seen  that  what  is  1 5  C 
holy  and  what  is  dear  to  the  Gods  are  different  and  not 
the  same.  Or  can  you  have  forgotten  ? 

Euth.  No.  I  remember. 

Soc.  And  do  you  not  realise  now  that  you  say  what  is 
pleasing  to  the  Gods  is  holy  ?  But  what  is  pleasing  to 
them  must  be  dear  to  them,  surely  ? 

Euth.  Yes,  by  all  means. 

Soc.  Then  either  our  former  conclusion  was  wrong,  or 
if  we  were  right  then,  we  must  have  made  some  mistake 

now. 

Euth.  It  does  seem  so. 

E 


50 


ΕΤΘΤΦΡΩΝ 


VV  Jin  A  3  Λ  V  f  «  f\  /  /  5 

ΛΑ.  2,11.  αρχής  apa  ήμ-ιν  πάλιν  σκεπτεον,  τι  εστι 
το  όσων'  ως  εγώ,  7τριν  αν  μάθω,  εκων  είναι  οΰκ  α7 Γοδειλιάσω. 
I 5  D άλλα  μη  με  άτιμάσης,  άλλα  π  αντί  τρόπω  προσεχών  τον 
νουν  ο  τι  μάλιστα  νυν  είπε  την  αλήθειαν,  οισθα  yap,  εΐπερ 
τις  άλλος  ανθρώπων,  καί  ονκ  άφετεος  ει,  ώσπερ  6  ΐίρωτενς, 
πρίν  αν  εΐπης.  εί  yap  μη  ηδησθα  σαφώς  το  τε  όσων  καί 
το  άνόσων,  ονκ  εστιν  όπως  αν  ποτέ  επεχείρησας  νπερ 
άνόρός  θητος  άνδρα  πρεσβύτην  πατέρα  όιωκάθειν  φόνον, 
άλλα  καί.  τονς  θεονς  αν  εόεισας  παρακινόννενειν,  μη  ονκ 
όρθως  α ντο  ποιησοις,  καί  τονς  άνθρωπονς  ησχννθης.  ννν  δε 
I  5  ϋ  ευ  οιο  οτι  σαφώς  οιει  εωεναι  το  τε  όσων  και  μη.  είπε  ονν, 
ω  βέλτιστε  Ε νθνφρον,  και  μη  άποκρνφη  ο  τι  αντό  ηγεί. 

ΕΥΘ.  Έίσανθις  τοίννν,  ω  2$ ωκρατες '  ννν  yap  σπεύδω 
ποι,  καί  μοι  ώρα  άπιεναι. 

^Ω.  Οια  ποιείς,  ω  εταίρε,  απ’  ελπίόος  με  καταβαλων 
μεyάλης  άπερχει,  ην  ειχον  ώ?  παρά  σου  μαθων  τά  τε  όσια 
και  μη  και  της  προς  Μ ελητον  γραφής  άπαλλάζομαι, 
ενόει ξάμενος  εκεινω,  ότι  σοφός  ηόη  παρ’  Ε νθνφρονος  τά 
Τ  6  Α  0εια  γεγονα,  και  οτι  ονκετι  νπ’  άγνοιας  αυτοσχεδιάζω  ουδέ 
καινοτομώ  περί  αυτά,  και  όη  και  τον  άλλον  βίον  ότι 
άμεινον  βιωσοίμην. 


EUTHYPHRO 


51 


XX.  Soc.  Then  we  must  begin  again  from  the  begin¬ 
ning  to  find  out  what  holiness  is ;  for  I  will  never  give  in 
until  I  learn  it.  Only  do  not  make  light  of  me  now,  but  1 5  D 
let  me  have  your  whole  attention  and  tell  me  the  truth. 

You  know  it,  if  any  man  knows,  and  you  must  be  held, 
like  Proteus,  until  you  speak.  For  unless  you  had  known, 
and  known  perfectly,  what  holiness  is  and  unholiness,  you 
would  never  have  dreamt  of  prosecuting  your  old  father  for 
murder  on  a  slave’s  account ;  you  would  have  feared  to 
rouse  the  anger  of  the  Gods  by  something  wrong  in  the 
deed,  and  you  would  have  shrunk  from  the  indignation  of 
men.  But  as  it  is,  I  am  sure  you  believe  you  understand 
perfectly  the  difference  between  holiness  and  wickedness  :  1 5  E 
so  you  must  tell  me,  dear  Euthyphro,  and  not  hide  your 
opinion  any  more. 

Euth.  Some  other  time  then,  Socrates ;  I  am  in  a  great 
hurry  now,  and  it  is  time  for  me  to  be  off. 

Soc.  Oh,  my  friend,  my  friend !  You  dash  all  my  hopes 
to  the  ground  and  leave  me  desolate  !  And  I  had  hoped  to 
learn  from  you  what  holiness  really  was  ;  and  then  I  should 
have  freed  myself  from  the  charge  Meletus  has  brought 
against  me ;  for  I  could  have  shown  him  that  I  had  learnt 
all  about  it  at  last  from  Euthyphro,  and  need  make  no  16  A 
more  theories  of  my  own  in  ignorance,  nor  coin  a  new 
religion,  and,  above  all,  that  for  the  rest  of  my  days  I 
should  live  a  better  life. 


THE  APOLOGY 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ  2ΩΚΡΑΤΟΥΞ 


PART  I 


BEFORE  THE  VERDICT 


1 7  A  I.  '  O  τι  μεν  υμείς,  ω  άνδρες  Αθηναίοι,  πεπόνθα τε  υπό 
των  εμων  κατηγόρων,  ουκ  οίδα'  εγώ  δ’  ονν  καί  αυτός  υπ 
αυτών  ολίγου  έμαυτου  έπελαθόμην'  ουτω  πιθανώς  έλεγον. 
καί  tol  αληθές  γε,  ώ?  έπος  είπαν,  ουδέν  είρηκασιν.  μάλιστα 
δε  αυτών  εν  εθαυμασα  των  πολλών  ων  εψευσαντο,  τούτο  εν  ω 
eAeyov  ως  χρη  νρας  ευλαρασί/αι,  μη  νττ  εμον  € ξαττατηνητ e, 
1 7  Β  ώξ  δεινού  όντος  λέγειν.  τό  γάρ  μη  αίσχυνθηναι,  ότι  αυτίκα 
υπ ’  εμού  έξελεγχθήσονται  έργω,  επειδάν  μηδ ’  όπωστιουν 
φαίνωμαι  δεινός  λέγειν,  τούτο  μοι  έδοξεν  αυτών  άναισχυντό- 
τατον  είναι,  εί  μη  άρα  δεινόν  καλουσιν  ουτοι  λέγειν  τον 
τάληθη  λέγοντα'  εί  μεν  γαρ  τούτο  λέγουσιν,  όμολο- 
γοίην  άν  έγωγε  ου  κατ ά  τουτους  είναι  ρητωρ.  οΰτοι  μεν 
ουν,  ώσπερ  εγω  Λέγω,  η  τι  η  ουόεν  αληυ^ς  είρηκασιν  υμείς 
δε  μου  άκουσεσθε  πάσαν  την  αλήθειαν,  ου  μέντοι  μα.  Δία, 
ώ  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  κεκαλλιεπημένους  γε  λόγους,  ώσπερ  ο I 
I  7  C  τούτων,  ρημασί  τε  καί  υνόμασιν,  ουδέ  κεκοσμη μένους,  αλλ’ 
άκουσεσθε  είκη  λεγόμενα  τοΐς  επιτυχουσιν  υνόμασιν' 
πιστεύω  γαρ  δίκαια  είναι  ά  λέγω,  καί  μηδείς  υμών  προσδο- 
κησάτω  άλλως'  ουδέ  γαρ  άν  δηπου  πρέποι,  ώ  άνδρες,  τηδε 
ΤΎ)  ηλικία  ώσπερ  μειρακίω  πλάττοντι  λόγους  εις  υμάς 
εισιεναι.  καί  μέντοι  καί  πάνυ,  ω  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  τούτο 
υμών  δέομαι  καί  παρίεμαι'  εάν  διά  των  αυτών  λόγων 

54 


THE  APOLOGY 


PART  I 


'  t  'O'  Γ''·- 

Ctip  ACu  ^  C 

^// 


BEFORE  THE  VERDICT 

I.  I  DO  not  know,  men  of  Athens,  what  you  have  felt  17  A 
in  listening  to  my  accusers,  but  they  almost  made  even 
me  forget  myself,  they  spoke  so  plausibly.  And  yet,  I 
may  say,  they  have  not  spoken  one  word  of  truth.  And 
of  all  the  lies  they  told,  I  wondered  most  at  their  saying 
that  you  ought  to  be  on  your  guard  against  being  misled 
by  me,  as  I  was  a  great  speaker.  To  feel  no  shame  when  1 7  B 
they  knew  that  they  would  be  refuted  immediately  by  my 
own  action,  whenT  show  you  that  I  am  not  a  great  speaker 
at  al]i — that  did  seem  to  me  the  height  of  their  audacity  ; 
unless  perhaps  they  mean  by  a  great  speaker  a  man  who 
speaks  the  truth.  If  that  is  their  meaning  I  should  agree 
that  I  am  an  orator,  though  not  like  them.  For  they,  as  I 
have  told  you,  have  said  little  or  nothing  that  is  true  ;  frorn 
me  you  will  hear  the  whole  truth.  Not,  I  assure  you,  that 
you  will  get  fine  arguments  like  theirs,  men  of  Athens, 
decked  out  in  splendid  phrases,  no,  but  plain  speech  1 7  C 
set  forth  in  any  words  that  come  to  hand.  I  believe 
what  I  have  to  say  is  true,  and  I  ask  that  none  of  you 
should  look  for  anything  else.  Indeed,  gentlemen,  it 
would  hardly  suit  my  age  to  come  before  you  like  a  boy, 
with  a  made-up  speech.  And  yet,  I  do  ask  one  thing 
of  you,  and  I  ask  it  very  earnestly :  if  you  find  I  speak  in 
my  defence  just  as  I  have  been  accustomed  to  speak  over 

55 


56 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


ά κουητε  μου  απολογούμενου,  δι’  ωνπερ  είωθα  λεγειν  καί  εν 
άγορα  επί  των  τραπεζών,  ΐνα  υμών  πολλοί  άκηκόασι,  καί 
I  7  D  άλλοθι,  μήτε  θαυμάζειν  μήτε  θορυβεΐν  τούτον  ενεκα.  εχει 
yap  ουτωσί.  I  νυν  εγώ  πρώτον  επί  δικαστή  ριον  άναβεβηκα, 


ετη  γεγονως  εβδομή  κοντά'  /α τεχνως  ουν  ζενως  εχω  τής 
ενθάδε  λεξεως.  ώσπερ  ουν  αν,  εί  τω  δντι  ζενος  ετυγ  χάνον 
ων,  ξυνεγιγνωσκετε  δήπου  αν  μοι,  εί  εν  εκείνη  τή  φωνή  τε 
1 8  Α  καί  τω  τρόπω  ελεγον,  εν  |  οΐσπερ  ετεθράμμην,  καί  δή  καί 
νυν  τούτο  υμών  δέομαι  δίκαιον,  ως  γε  μοι  δοκω,  τον  μεν 
τρόπον  τής  λεζεως  εάν'  ίσως  μεν  yap  χείρων,  ίσως  δε 
βελτίων  αν  ειη%  αυτό  δε  τούτο  σκοπεΐν  καί  τουτω  τον  νουν 
προσεχειν,  εί  δίκαια  λέγω  ή  μή'  δικαστον  μεν  yap  αυτή 
αρετή,  ρήτορος  δε  τάληθή  λεγειν. 

XI.  Πρώτον  μεν  ουν  δίκαιός  είμι  άπολογήσασθαι,  ω 
άνδρες  Αθηναίοι,  προς  τα  πρωτά  μου  if/ευδη  κατηγορη- 
μενα  καί  τους  πρώτους  κατηγόρους,  έπειτα  δε  προς  τα 
ΐ8  Β υστέρα  καί  τους  υστέρους.  εμού  γάρ  πολλοί  κατήγοροι 
γεγόνασιν  προς  υμάς  καί  πάλαι,  πολλά  ήδη  ετη  καί 
ουδεν  αληθές  λεγοντες,  ους  εγώ  μάλλον  φοβούμαι  ή 
τους  άμφί  ’Ά νυτον,  καίπερ  όντας  καί  τουτους  δεινούς’ 
άλλ’  εκείνοι  δεινότεροι,  ω  άνδρες,  οι  υμών  τους  7τολλούς 
εκ  παίδων  παραλαμβάνοντες  επειθόν  τε  καί  κατηγο¬ 
ρούν  εμού  ουδεν  μάλλον  αληθές,  ως  εστιν  τις  2ω- 
κράτης,  σοφός  άνήρ,  τα  τε  μετεωρα  φροντιστής  καί  τα 
ΐ8  Ουπδ  γής  άπαντα  ά νεζητηκως  καί  τον  ήττω  λόγον  κρείττω 
ποιων.  ουτοι,  ω  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  οί  ταυτην  την  φήμην 
κατασκεδάσαντες,  οι  δεινοί  είσίν  μου  κατήγοροι'  οί  γάρ 
άκουοντες  ηγούνται  τους  ταυτα  ζητουντ ας  ουδέ  θεούς  νομί- 
ζειν.  επειτα  είσιν  ουτοι  οί  κατήγοροι  πολλοί  καί  πολυν 
χρόνον  ήδη  κατηγορη κότες,  ετι  δε  καί  εν  ταυτη  τή  ηλικία 


THE  APOLOGY 


57 


the  bankers’  tables  in  the  market-place, — as  many  of  you 
have  heard  me,  there  and  elsewhere ;  do  not  be  surprised 
at  it,  and  do  not  interrupt.  For  this  is  how  the  matter  17  D 
stands.  {This  is  the  first  time  J  have  ever  been  in  a  law 
suit,  and  I  am  seventy  years  old,-^-so  I  am  really  an  entire 
stranger  to  the  language  of  this  place.  Now,  just  as  you 
would  have  forgiven  me,  I  am  sure,  had  I  been  actually  a  rl, 
foreigner,  if  I  had  spoken  in  the  tongue  and  manner  to 
which  I  had  been  born,  so  I  think  I  have  a  right  to  ask  1 8  A 
you  now  to  let  my  way  of  speaking  pass — be  it  good  or 
bad — and  to  give  your  minds  to  this  question  and  this  ^  ^ 


*3 


only,  whether  what  I  say  is  right  or  not.  That  is  the 
virtue  of  the  judge,  as  truth  is  the  virtpe  of  the  orator. 

II.  Now  in  making  my  defence,  men  of  Athens,  it 
will  be  well  for  me  to  deal  first  with  the  first  false  accusa¬ 
tions  and  my  first  accusers,  and  afterwards  with  those  that 
followed.  For  I  have  had  many  accusers  who  have  18  B 
come  before  you  now  for  many  years,  and  have  not  said 
one  word  of  truth,  and  I  fear  them  more  than  Anytus  and 
his  supporters,  though  they  are  formidable  too.  But 
the  others,  gentlemen,  are  still  more  to  be  feared,  I  mean 
the  men  who  took  most  of  you  in  hand  when  you  were  boys, 
and  have  gone  on  persuading  you  ever  since,  and  accusing 
me — quite  falsely — telling  you  that  there  is  a  man  called 
Socrates,  a  philospher,  who  speculatesjj.bo_ut_thjg  things  in  the 
sky,  and  has  searched  into  the  secrets  of  the  earth,  and  makes  1  $  C 
the  worse  appear  the  better  reason.  These  men,  Athenians, 
the  men  who  have  spread  this  tale  abroad,  they  are  the 
accusers  that  I  fear ;  for  the  listeners  think  that  those 
who  8tudy  such  matters  must  be  atheist^ as  well.  Besides, 
these  accusers  of  mine  are  many,  and  they  have  been  at 
this  work  for  many  years,  and  that,  too,  when  you  were 


/  1 


58 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


λεγοντες  προς  υμάς,  εν  ύ)  αν  μάλιστα  επιστευσατε,  παΐδες 
οντες,  ενιοι  δ’  υμών  καί  μειράκια,  άτεχνως  ερήμην  κατηγο- 
1 8  D  ρουντες  απολογούμενου  ουδενός.  δ  δε  πάντων  άλογώτατον, 
οτι  ουδέ  τα  ονόματα  όΐόν  τε  αυτών  είδεναι  καί  είπειν,  πλήν 
εΐ  τις  κωμωδοποιός  τυγχάνει  ων’  οσοι  δε  φθάνω  και  δια- 
β°λή  χρωμενοι  υμάς  άνεπειθον,  οι  δε  και  αυτοί  πεπεισμένοι 
άλλους  πείθοντες,  ουτοι  πάντες  άπορωτατοί  είσιν’  ουδέ  γαρ 
άναβιβάσασθαι  οΐόν  τ’  εστιν  αυτών  ενταυθοΐ  ουδ ’  ελεγξαι 
ουδενα,  άλλ’  ανάγκη  άτεχνως  ώσπερ  σκιαμαχεΐν  απολογού¬ 
μενου  τε  και  ελεγχειν  μηδενός  άποκρινομενου.  αξιώσατε 


ουν  και  υμείς,  ώσπερ  εγω  λέγω,  διττούς  μου  τους  κατηγό- 
!  b  Ε  ρους  γεγονεναι,  ετερους  μεν  τους  άρτι  κατηγορήσαντας, 
ετερους  δε  τους  παλαι,  ους  εγω  λέγω,  και  οιήθητε  δεΐν 
προς  εκείνους  πρώτον  με  απολογησασθαι'  καί  γαρ  υμείς 
εκείνων  πρότερον  ήκουσατε  κατηγορονντων,  και  πολύ 
μάλλον  ή  τωνδε  των  ύστερον.  εΐεν’  άπολογητεον  δά],  ω 
1 9  Α  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  και  επιχειρητεον  |  υμών  εξελεσθαι  την 
διαβολ7]ν,  ην  υμείς  εν  πολλω  χρόνιο  εσχετε,  ταυτην  εν 
ούτως  ολιγω  χρονω.  βουλοίμην  μεν  ουν  άν  τούτο  ούτως 
γενεσθαι,  εί  τι  άμεινον  και  υμιν  και  εμοί,  και  πλέον  τι  με 
ποιήσαι  απολογούμενου’  οΐμαι  δε  αυτό  χαλεπόν  είναι,  καί 
ου  πάνυ  με  λανθάνει  οΐόν  εστιν.  όμως  τούτο  μεν  ΐτω  όπη 
τω  θεω  φίλον,  τω  δε  νόμω  πειστεον  καί  άπολογητεον. 

19  Β  HI.  Αναλάβωμεν  ουν  εξ  άρχής,  τις  ή  κατηγορία  εστίν, 
εξ  ής  ή  εμή  διαβολή  γεγονεν,  ή  δή  καί  πιστευων  Μελητός 
με  εγραφατο  την  γραφήν  ταυτην.  εΐεν’  τι  δή  λ  άγοντες 


THE  APOLOGY 


59 


at  an  age  at  which  you  would  be  most  ready  to  believe  f  yA 
them,  for  you  were  young,  some  of  you  mere  striplings,  /  jjA  “/U^· 
and  judgment  has  really  gone  by  default,  since  there  was  14* 
no  one  to  make  the  defence.  And  what  is  most  troublesome  1 8  D 
of  all,  it  is  impossible  even  to  find  out  their  names, 
unless  there  be  a  comedian  among  them.  As  for  those 
who  have  tried  to  persuade  you  through  envy  and 
prejudice,  some,  it  is  true,  convincing  others  because  they  ζ 
were  convinced  themselves, 


Uu 


these  are  the  hardest  to  deal  u  j 

{fit 


with  of  all.  It  is  not  possible  to  call  up  any  of  them  here  s 

and  cross-examine  them  :  one  is  compelled,  as  it  were, 
fight  with  shadows  in  making  one’s  defence,  and  hold  an 
inquiry  where  there  is  nobody  to  reply.  So  I  would  have 
you  understand  with  me  that  my  accusers  have  been,  as  I 
say,  of  two  kinds :  those  who  have  just  brought  this  1 8  E  ^ 
charge  against  me,  and  others  of  longer  standing,  of  whom 
I  am  speaking  now ;  and  I  ask  you  to  realise  that  I  must 
defend  myself  against  the  latter  first  of  all,  for  they  were 
the  first  whom  you  heard  attack  me,  and  at  much  greater  /  ^ 

length  than  these  who  followed  them.  And  now,  I^A^^ 
presume,  I~must  make  my  defence,  men  of  Athens,  and 
try  in  the  short  time  I  have  before  me  to  remove  from 
your  minds  this  calumny  which  has  had  so  long  to  grow. 

I  could  wish  for  that  result,  and  for  some  success  in  my 
defence,  if  it  would  be  good  for  you  and  me.  But  I 
think  it  a  difficult  task,  and  I  am  not  unaware  of  its 
nature.  However,  let  the  result  be  what  God  wills  ; 


)  9  ^ 

!  WVV 


I  must  obey  the  law,  and  make  my  defence. 

III.  Let  us  begin  from  the  beginning  and  see  what  the  19  B 
accusation  is  that  gave  birth  to  the  prejudice  on  which 
Meletus  relied  when  he  brought  this  charge.  iNow,  what 


6o 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


διεβαλλον  οι  διαβάλλοντες ;  ώσπερ  ουν  κατηγόρων  τψ 
άντωμοσί αν  δει  άναγνώναι  αυτών'  Σωκράτης  αδικεί  καί 
περιεργάζεται  ζητών  τά  τε  υπό  γης  και  ουράνια  και  τον 
ηττω  λόγον  κρείττω  ποιων  και  άλλους  τά  αυτά  ταΐιτα 
19  C  διδάσκων,  τοιαυτη  τις  εστιν’  ταυτα  γάρ  εωράτε  και  αυτοί 
εν  τη  Άριστοφάνους  κωμωδία,  Σωκράτη  τινά  εκεί  περι¬ 
φερόμενου,  φάσκοντά  τε  άεροβατεΐν  και  άλλην  πολλην 
φλυαρίαν  φλυαρουντα,  ών  εγώ  ουδεν  ούτε  μεγα  ούτε  μικρόν 
περί  επα'ίω.  καί,  ουχ  ώς  άτιμάζων  λέγω  την  τοιαυτην  επι¬ 
στήμην,  εϊ  τις  περί  των  τοιουτων  σοφός  εστιν'  μη  πως  εγώ 
υπό  Μελάτου  τοσαυτας  δίκας  φυγοιμι'  αλλά  γάρ  εμοί 
ig  ΐ)  τούτων,  ώ  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι,  ουδεν  μετεστιν’  μάρτυρας  δε 
αυτους  υμών  τους  πολλούς  παρέχομαι,  και  άζιώ  υμάς 
άλληλους  διδάσκειν  τε  καί  φράζε ιν,  όσοι  εμού  πωποτε 
άκηκόατε  διαλεγομενου’  πολλοί  δε  υμών  οι  τοιουτοί  είσιν’ 
φράζετε  ουν  άλλτ^λοι?,  εί  πωποτε  η  μικρόν  η  μεγα  ηκουσε 
τις  υμών  εμού  περί  των  τοιουτων  διαλεγομενου’  καί  εκ 
τούτων  γνώσεσθε  ότι  τοιαυτ  εστιν  καί  τάλλα  περί  εμού  ά 
οι  πολλοί  λεγουσιν. 

IV.  ’Αλλά  γάρ  ούτε  τούτων  ουδεν  εστιν,  ουδέ  γ*  εί  τίνος 
άκηκόατε  ως  εγώ  παιδευειν  επιχειρώ  ανθρώπους  καί  χρήματα 
1 9  Ε  πράττομαι,  ουδέ  τούτο  αληθές.  επεί  καί  τουτό  γε  μοι 
δοκεΐ  καλόν  είναι,  εί  τις  οίός  τ’  εΐη  παιδευειν  ανθρώπους 
ώσπερ  Γοργίας  τε  ό  Λεοντινος  καί  Πρδδικος  ό  Κειος  καί 
'Ιππίας  ό  Ήλειος.  τούτων  γάρ  έκαστος ,  ώ  άνδρες,  οίός  τ’ 
εστιν  ίων  εις  εκάστην  των  πόλεων  τους  νέους,  οις  εζεστι 
των  εαυτών  πολιτών  προίκα  ζυνεΐναι  ώ  άν  βουλωνται, — τον- 


THE  APOLOGY 


61 


did  they  say  to  raise  this  prejudice  ? 


s* 


I  must  treat  them  as  ,  it 
though  they  were  prosecutors  and  read  their  affidavit :  .  j*» 

“  Socrates.  we  say,  is  a  trouble  to  the  State.  He  is  04  .. 
guilty  of  inquiring  into  the  things  beneath  the  earth,  and  *  yj 

the  things  of  the  firmament,  he  makes  the  worse  appear  k^ 
the  hpttpr  report ^  and  he__teaches  others  so.”  That  1S19C 
the  sort  of  thing  they  say  :  you  saw  it  yourselves  in 
the  comedy  of  Aristophanes, — a  character  called  Socrates 
carried  about  in  a  basket,  saying  that  he  walked  on 
air,  and  talking  a  great  deal  more  nonsense  about  matters 
of  which  I  do  not  understand  one  word,  great  or  small. 

And  I  do  not  say  this  in  contempt  of  such  know¬ 
ledge,  if  any  one  is  clever  at  those  things.  May  Meletus 
never  bring  so  grave  a  charge  against  me  !  But  in  truth, 
gentlemen,  I  have  nothing  to  do  with  these  subjects.  I  call  19  D 
you  yourselves, — most  of  you, — to  witness  :  I  ask  you  to 
instruct  and  tell  each  other, — those  of  you  who  have  ever 
heard  me  speak,  and  many  of  you  have, — tell  each  other, 

I  say,  if  any^of  you  have  ever  heard  one  word  from  me, 


^  j 
ΙιΦ**' 


small  or  great,  upon  such  themes  ;  and  you  will  realise  from 
this  that  the  other  tales  people  tell  about  me  are  of  the 
same  character.  y 

IV.  There  is,  in  fact,  no  truth  in  them  at  all,  nor  yet  tyf  s 
in  what  you  may  have  heard  from  others,  that  I  try  to  make 
money  by  my  teaching.  Now  here  again,  I  think  it  woulcfii9  E 
be  a  great  thing  if  one  could  teach  men  as  Gorgias  ofC  Ay 
Leontini  can,  and  Prodicus  of  Keos,  and  Hippias  ofV 
Elea.  They  can  all  go  to  every  one  of  our  cities,  an<r  J 

take  hold  of  the  young  men, — who  are  able,  as  it  is,  to 
associate  free  of  charge  with  any  of  their  fellow  citizens 
they  may  choose, — and  they  can  persuade  them  to  leave 


02 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


-ίλτους  πείθουσΐ  Τας  εκείνων  £wOV(TLG ΐς  I  απολίποντας  σφίσιν 
ζυνειναι  χρήματα  δι δοντας  και  χαριν  προσειδεναι.  επεί 
και  άλλος  ανηρ  ec γτι  Παριος  ενθάδε  σοφος,  δν  εγώ  ησθόμγ/ν 
επιδημουντα  ετυχον  yap  προσελθων  ανδρί  δς  τετελεκε 


χρήματα  σοφιστ αΐς  πλείω  τ)  ξυμπαντες  οι  άλλοι,  Καλλία 
τω  Ιππονικου  τούτον  ουν  ανηρομην — εστδν  yap  αυτώ  δυο 
ω  Καλλια,  ην  δ  εγω,  ει  /χεν  σου  τώ  υίεε  7 τώλω  η 
μοσχω  εγενεσθην,  είχομεν  αν  αυτοίν  επιστάτην  λαβεΐν  καί 

20  Β  μισθωσασθαι,  ος  εμελλεν  αυτω  καλώ  τε  κάγαθω  ποιησειν 
την  προσηκονσαν  αρετήν'  ην  δ’  άν  ουτος  ?)  των  ιππικών  τις 
η  των  γεωργικών'  νυν  δ  επειδή  άνθρωπο)  εστδν ,  τινα  αυτοιν 
εν  νω  εχεις  επιστάτην  λαβεΐν ;  τις  Τϊ}ς  τοιαυτης  αρετής , 
της  ανθρώπινης  τε  και  πολίτικης,  επιστήμων  εστιν ;  οΤμαι 
γα ρ  σε  εσκεφθαι  δια  την  των  νιεων  κτησιν.  εστιν  τις , 
εφην  εγω,  η  ου ;  Πανυ  ye,  ^  δ’  ος.  Τις,  ^ν  δ’  εγώ,  και 
ποδαπος,  και  ποσού  διδάσκει ;  Ευ^νος,  εφη,  ω  Ί^ωκρατες, 
ΙΙαριος,  πεντε  μνων'  και  εγω  τον  Εΰ^νον  εμακάρισα,  ει  ώς 
αληθώς  Ιχοι  ταντην  την  τέχνην  και  ούτως  εμμάλως  διδάσκοι. 

20  C  εγω  ουν  και  αυτός  εκαλλννομην  τε  καί.  ηβρυνόμην  αν, 
ει  ηπισταμην  ταυτα*  αλλ’  ου  yap  επίσταμαι,  ώ  άνδρες 
Αθηναίοι. 


V.  Υπολαβοι  αν  ουν  τις  υ/χών  ίσως*  αλλ’,  ώ  ]£ώκρατες,( 
το  σον  τι  εστι  πράγμα;  πόθεν  αι  διαβολαί  σοι  αυται 
γεγονασιν ;  ου  γαρ  δτρτου  σου  ye  ούδεν  των  άλλων  περιτ- 
τοτερον  πραγματευόμενου  επειτα  τοσαυτη  φημη  τε  καί 
λογος  γεγονεν,  ει  μη  τι  έπραττες  άλλοιον  ^  οί  πολλοί· 
λ  eye  ουν  ημΐν,  τι  εστιν,  ινα  μη  ημείς  περί  σου  αυτοσχε- 
20  D  διαζωμεν.  ταυτι  μοι  δοκει  δίκαια  λεγειν  ο  λεγων,  καγώ 
νμΐν  πειρασομαι  αποδειζαι ,  τι  ποτ  εστιν  τούτο  δ  εμοι 


THE  APOLOGY 


-V- 


63 

:his  society  for  theirs  and  pay  them  money  and  be  very  20  A 
grateful  to  them  too.  Why,  there  is  another  philosopher 
here  from  Paros ;  he  is  in  town,  I  know  :  for  I  happened 
to  meet  a  friend  of  mine  who  has  spent  more  money  on 
Sophists  than  all  the  rest  put  together, — Callias  the  son 
of  Hipponicus.  Now  I  put  a  question  to  him, — he  has  two 
sons  of  his  own, — “  Callias, ”  I  said,  “  if  your  two  sons  were 
only  colts  or  bullocks  we  could  have  hired  a  trainer  for 
them  to  make  them  beautiful  and  good,  and  all  that  they 
should  be  ;  and  our  trainer  would  have  been,  I  take  it,  a  20  B 
horseman  or  a  farmer.  But  now  that  they  are  human 
beings,  have  you  any  trainer  in  your  mind  for  them  ?  Is 
there  any  one  who  understands  what  a  man  and  a  citizen 
ought  to  be  ?  I  am  sure  you  have  thought  of  it,  because  you 
have  sons  of  your  own.  Is  there  any  one,”  I  said,  “  or  q  j ^ 
not  ?  ”  “Oh  yes,”  said  he,  “  certainly  there  is.”  “Who  is  . 

he?”  I  asked,  “and  where  does  he  come  from  and  how 
much  does  he  charge  ?  ”  “  Euenus,”  he  answered,  “  from  V 

Paros;  five  minas  a  head.”  And  I  thought  Euenus 


the  happiest  of  men  if  he  really  has  that  power  and  can 
teach  for  such  a  moderate  fee.  Now  I  should  have  been  2 
set  up  and  given  myself  great  airs  if  I  had  possessed  that 
knowledge  ;  but  I  do  not  possess  it,  Athenians. 

V.  Some  of  you  w  say  perhapsT2^  But,  Socrates, 
what  can  your  calling  be  ?  What  has  given  rise  to  these 
calumnies  ?  Surely,  if  you  had  done  nothing  more  than 
any  other  man,  there  would  not  have  been  all  this  talk, 
had  you  never  acted  differently  from  other  people. 

You  must  tell  us  what  it  is,  that  we  may  not  be  left  to 
make  our  own  theories  about  you.” 

That  seems  to  me  a  fair  question,  and  I  will  try  to2oD 
show  you  myself  what  it  can  be  that  has  given  me  my  name 


J 


64 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


πεποίηκε  τό  τε  όνομα  καί  την  Βιαβολην  ακούετε  Βη.  και 
ίσως  μεν  Βόξω  τισιν  νμων  παίζειν,  εν  μεντοι  ίστε,  πασαι 
νμΐν  την  αλήθειαν  ερω.  εγω  yap,  ω  ανΒρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  Βι 
ουΒεν  άλλ’  η  δια  σοφίαν  τινα  τούτο  τδ  όνομα  εσχηκα. 
ποιαν  Βη  σοφίαν  ταντην  ;  ηττερ  εστίν  ίσως  ανθρώπινη  σοφία. 

20  Ετω  όντι  yap  κινδννεύω  ταντην  είναι  σοφός'  οντοι  Βε  τάχ’ 

αν,  ονς  άρτι  ελεγον,  μείζω  τινα  η  κατ’  άνθρωπον  σοφίαν 
σοφοί  εΐεν,  η  ονκ  εχω  τι  λέγω*'  ον  yap  Βη  εγωγε  αντην 
επ  ίσταμαι,  άλλ’  οστις  φησί  ψεύδεται  τε  καί  επί  Βιαβολη 
τη  εμη  λεγει.  καί  μ  οι,  ω  ανΒρες  ’Αθηναίοι,  μη  θορνβησητε, 
μη  Βε  αν  δόξω  τι  νμΐν  μεγα  λεγειν'  ον  yap  εμόν  ερω  τον 
λόγον,  ον  αν  λέγω,  άλλ’  eis  αξιόχρεων  νμΐν  τον  λεγοντα 
άνοίσω.  της  γαρ  εμης,  εί  Βη  τις  εστι  σοφία  καί  οία, 
μάρτνρα  νμΐν  παρεξομαι  τον  θεόν  τον  εν  Αελφοΐς.  Χαιρε- 

2 1  Α  φωντα  yap  Ιστέ  πον.  οντος  \  εμός  τε  εταίρος  ην  εκ 

νέου,  καί  νμων  τω  πληθει  εταίρος  τε  καί  ξννεφνγε  την 
φνγην  ταντην  καί  μεθ ’  νμων  κατηλθε.  καί  ΐστε  Βη  οϊος 
ην  Χαι ρεφων,  ώς  σφοΒρός  εφ’  δ  τι  όρμησειεν.  καί  Βη 
ποτέ  καί  εις  Δελφούς  ελθΐον  ετόλμησε  τοντο  μαντενσασθαι· 
καί,  όπερ  λέγω,  μη  θορνβεΐτε,  ω  ανΒρες'  ηρετο  yap  Βη,  εΐ 
τις  εμον  εϊη  σοφωτερος.  άνεΐλεν  ονν  η  Πυ0ια  μηΒενα 
σοφωτερον  είναι,  καί  τούτων  περί  δ  άΒελφός  νμΐν  αντού  \ 
οντοσί  μαρτνρησει,  επειδή  εκείνος  τετελεύτηκε ν.< 

2 1  Β  VI.  ~%κε ψασθε  δέ  ων  ενεκα  ταντα  λέγω'  μέλλω  yap 
νμας  ΒιΒάξειν,  όθεν  μοι  η  Βιαβολη  γεγονε.  ταντα  γαρ 
εγω  άκούσας  ενεθνμούμην  οντωσί *  τι  ποτέ  λεγει  6  θεός, 
καί  τι  ποτέ  αίνίττεται ;  εγω  γαρ  Βη  ούτε  μεγα  ούτε  σμικρον 
ξύνοιδα  εμαντω  σοφός  ων'  τί  ονν  ποτέ  λεγει  φάσκων  εμε 


.^ι _ 

THE  APOLOGY  65  Γ 

and  produced  the  calumny.  Listen  to  me  then.  Some 
of  you  may  ,  think  I  am  in  jest,  but  I  assure  you  I  will  -L 
only  tell  the  truth?!  The  truth  is,  men  of  Athens,  that  I 
have  won  my  name  because  of  a  kind  of  wisdom,  nothing 
more  nor  less.  What  can  this  wisdom  be  ?  The  wisdom, 
perhaps,  that  is  proper  to  man.  It  may  really  be~that  I 
am  wise  in  that  wisdom  :  the  men  I  have  just  named  may 
have  a  wisdom  greater  than  man’s, — or  else  I  know  not  20  E 
what_to_xaLLit.  Certainly  I  do  not  possess  it  myself ;  \  ^ ' 
whoever  says  1 — ch-hes.  and  speaks  to  calumniate^me. 

And  pray,  gentlemen,  do  not  interrupt  me  :  not  even  if  you  k/nuhv^ 
think  I  boast.  The  words  that  I  say  will  not  be  my  A 
own  ;  I  will  refer  you  to  a  speaker  whom  you  must  respect. 

The  witness  I  will  bring  you  of  my  wisdom, — if  such  it 
really  is, — and  of  its  nature,  is  the  God  whose  dwelling  is 
at  Delphi.  Now  you  knew  Chairephon,  I  think.  He  2 1  A 
was  my  friend  from  boyhood,  and  the  friend  of  your 
democracy ;  he  went  with  you  into  exile,  and  came  back 
with  you.*  And  you  know,  I  think,  the  kind  of  man 
Chairephon  was — how  eager  in  everything  he  undertook. 

Well,  he  made  a  pilgrimage  to  Delphi,  and  had  the 
audacity  to  ask  this  question  from  the  oracle  :  and  now  I 
beg  you,  gentlemen,  do  not  interrupt  me  in  what  I  am  about 
to  say.  He  actually  asked  if  there  was  any  man  wiser 
than  me.  And  the  priestess  answered,  No.  I  have  his 
brother  here  to  give  evidence  of  this,  for  Chairephon 
himself  is  dead. 

VI.  Now  see  why  I  tell  you  this.  I  am  going  to  2 1  B 
show  you  how  the  calumny  arose.  When  I  heard  the 
answer,  I  asked  myself :  What  can  the  God  mean  ?  } 

What  can  he  be  hinting  ?  For  certainly  I  have  never 
thought  myself  wise  in  anything,  great  or  small.  What 

*  See  Note  5.  J 

F 


j  1 


BOSTON  COLLEi 

FACULTY  LIBRARY 
pmp^tmiit  mi  l  m a 


66 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


σοφωτατον  είναι ;  ον  γαρ  δηπον  ψεύδεται  γε*  οΰ  yap  θεμις 
αντω.  καί  πολνν  μεν  χρόνον  ηπόρονν,  τι  ποτέ  λεγει, 
επειτα  μόγις  πάνν  επί  ζητησιν  αντον  τοιαντην  τ ινα  έτρα- 
2 1  C  πόμην.  ηλθον  επί  τιν α  των  δοκονντων  σοφών  είναι,  ως 
ενταύθα,  εΐ  περ  που,  έλε'γ£ων  το  μαντεΐον  καί  άποφανων 
τω  χρησμω  οτι  οντοσί  εμον  σοφωτερός  εστι,  συ  δ’  εμε 
εφησθα.  διασκοπων  ονν  τούτον — δνόματι  yap  ονδεν  δέομαι 
λεγειν,  ην  δε  τις  των  πολίτικων  προς  δν  εγώ  σκοπών  τ οιοντόν 
τι  επαθον,  ω  ανδρες  Αθηναίοι — καί  διαλεγόμενος  αντω, 
εδοξε  μοι  ουτος  ο  άνηρ  δοκεΐν  μεν  είναι  σοφός  αλλοις  τε 
πολλοΐς  άνθρώποις  καί  μάλιστα  εαντω,  είναι  δ’  ον'  κάπειτα 
επειρωμην  αντω  δει κννναι,  οτι  οϊοιτο  μεν  είναι  σοφός,  εΐη 
2ΐΌδ’  ον.  εντεύθεν  ονν  τοντω  τε  άπηχθόμην  καί  πολλοΐς  των, 
παρόντων,  προς  εμαντόν  δ ’  ονν  άπιΐον  ελογ ιζόμην  on 
τούτον  μεν  τον  άνθρωπον  εγώ  σοφωτερός  είμι'  κινδυνεύει 
μεν  yap  ημών  ουδέτερος  ονδεν  καλόν  κάγαθόν  ειδεναι,  άλλ 
ουτος  μεν  οίεταί  τι  ειδεναι  ονκ  είδώς,  εγώ  δε,  ώσπερ  ουν 
ουκ  οιδα,  ουδέ  οίομαι'  εοικα  γονν  τοντον  γε  σμικρω  τινι 
αντω  τοντω  σοφωτερος  είναι,  οτι  ά  μη  οΤδα  ουδέ  οΐομαι 
ειδεναι'  εντεύθεν  επ’  άλλον  ηα  των  εκείνον  δοκονντων 
2 1  Ε  σοφωτερων  είναι,  καί  μοι  ταύτα  ταΰτα  έδο£ε*  και  ενταύθα 
κάκείνω  και  αλλοις  πολλοΐς  άπηχθόμην. 

VII.  Μετά  ταντ  ονν  ηδη  εφεξής  ηα,  αισθανόμενος  μ*ν 
και  λνπονμενος  καί  δεδιώς  οτι  άπηχθανόμην,  όμως 
αναγκαίου  εδόκει  είναι  το  του  θεόν  περί  πλείστον  ποιεΐσθαι. 


THE  APOLOGY 


67 


can  he  mean  then,  when  he  asserts  that  I  am  the  wisest 
of  men  ?  He  cannot  lie  of  course  :  that  would  be  impos¬ 
sible  for  him.  And  for  a  long  while  I  was  at  a  loss  to 
think  what  he  could  mean.  At  last,  after  much  thought, 

I  started  on  some  such  course  of  search  as  this.  1 2 1  C 
betook  myself  to  one  of  the  men  who  seemed  wise.  ,  *4 
thinking  that  there,  if  anywhere,  I  should  refute  the 
utterance,  and  could  say  to  the  oracle:  “  This  man  is11^,;^^ 
wiser  than  me^juid^nu-said.  I-  was-  the  wisest.,r~~Now 
when  I  looked  into  the  man — there  is  no  need  to  give 
his  name — it  was  one  of  our  citizens,  men  of  Athens, 
with  whom  I  had  an  experience  of  this  kind — when  we 
talked  together  I  thought,  “This  man  seems  wise  to  many 
men,  and  above  all  to  himself,  but  he  is  not  so;”  and 
then  I  tried  to  show  him  that  he  thought  he  was  wise,  but 
he  was  not.  Then  he  got  angry  with  me,  and  so  did  21  D 
many  who  heard  us,  but  I  went  away  and  thought  to 
myself,  “Well,  at  any  rate  I  am  wiser  than  this  manr\  ^ 
probably  neither  of  us  knows  anything  of  beauty  or  of 

good,  but  he  thinks  he  knows  something  when  he  knows  l·' 

__ - - - - - - - - - ; - a - - -  > 

nothing,  and  I,  if  I  know  nothing,  at  least  never  suppose  \ 

that  I  dQ.  So  it  looks  as  though  I  really  were  a  little  wiser-' 

than  he,  just  in  so  far  as  I  do  not  imagine  myself  to  know 

things  about  which  I  know  nothing  at  all.”  After  that  I 

went  to  another  man  who  seemed  to  be  wiser  still,  and  I  2 1  E 

had  exactly  the  same  experience :  and  then  he  got  angry 

with  me  too,  and  so  did  many  more. 

VII.  Thus  I  went  round  them  all,  one  after  the  other, 
aware  of  what  was  happening  and  sorry  for  it,  and  afraid 
that  they  were  getting  to  hate  me  :  but  still  I  felt  I  must 
put  the  word  of  the  God  first  and  foremost,  and  that  I 


UU'  y* 
\ 


cj-  0**^ 


' 

. _ v 

γ  v  v*'  *'ΛΛ^Λ 

c-vW^vU·. 


68 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


ιτεον  ονν  σκοπονντι  τον  χρησμόν ,  τί  λεγει,  επί  άπαντας 
τους  τι  δοκοΰντας  ειδεν at.  και  νη  τον  κνν α,  ώ  ανδρες  | 

2  2  Α’ Αθηναίοι’  δει  γαρ  προς  υ/χας  ταληθη  λεγειν'  ^  μην  εγώ 
επαθόν  τι  τοιοντον'  οι  μεν  μάλιστα  ενδοκιμονντες  εδο£αν 
μοι  ολίγον  δεΐν  τον  πλζίστ ον  ενδεείς  είναι  ζητονντι  κατά 
τον  θεόν,  άλλοι  δε  δοκουντες  φανλότεροι  επιεικέστεροι 
είναι  ανδρες  7τρδς  το  φρονίμως  εχειν.  δει  δη  νμΐν  την 
εμην  πλάνην  επιδεΐξαι  ώσπερ  πόνονς  τινάς  πονονντος, 
ΐνα  μοι  και  ανέλεγκτος  η  μαντεία  γενοιτο.  μετά  γαρ 
τους  πολιτι κονς  ηα  επί  τους  ποιητάς  τους  τε  των  τραγω- 
22  Βδιών  καί  τους  των  δι θνράμβων  καί  τους  άλλους,  ως 
εντανθα  επ’  α ντοφωρω  καταληφό μένος  εμαντον  άμα θεστερον 
εκείνων  όντα’  άναλαμβάνων  ονν  αυτών  τα  ποιήματα, 
ά  μοι  εδόκει  μάλιστα  πεπραγματενσθαι  αντοΐς,  διηρωτων 
αν  αΰτους  τί  λεγοιεν,  ίν  άμα  τι  καί  μανθάνοιμι  παρ 
αυτών,  αίσχννομαι  ονν  νμΐν  ειπεΐν,  ω  ανδρες,  ταληθη, 
όμως  δε  ρητεον.  ως  έπος  γαρ  ειπεΐν  ολίγον  αυτών  άπαντες 
οί  παρόντες  άν  βελτιον  ελεγον  περί  ών  αυτοί  επεποιηκεσαν. 
22  C  εγνων  ονν  καί  περί  των  ποιητών  εν  όλίγω  τοντο,  ότι  ον 
σοφία  ποιοΐεν,  α  ποιοΐεν,  αλλά  φύσει  τινί  καί  ενθονσιά- 
ζοντες,  ώσπερ  οι  θεομάντεις  καί  οι  χρησμωδοί ’  καί  γάρ 
ουτοι  λεγονσι  μεν  πολλά  καί  καλά,  ΐσασιν  δε  ονδεν  ών 
λεγουσι.  τοιοντόν  τί  μοι  εφάνησαν  πάθος  καί  οί  ποιηταί 
πεπονθότες'  καί  άμα  ησθόμην  αυτών  δια  την  ποίησιν 
οίομενων  καί  ταλλα  σοφωτάτων  είναι  ανθρώπων  α  ουκ 
ησαν.  άπηα  ονν  καί  εντενθεν  τω  αΰτω  οίόμενος  περιγε- 
γονεναι,  ωπερ  καί  τών  πολίτικων. 

VIII.  Τελευτών  ονν  επι  τους  χειροτεχνας  ηα’  εμαντω 
2  2  D  γαρ  ζννηδη  ονδεν  επισταμενω,  ως  έπος  ειπεΐν,  τοντονς 


THE  APOLOGY 


69 


must  go  through  all  who  seemed  to  have  any  knowledge 
in  order  to  find  out  what  the  oracle  meant.  And  by  the 
Dog,  men  of  Athens, — for  I  must  tell  you  the  truth, — this  22  A 
was  what  I  experienced.  As  I  went  on  with  the  quest  th<! 

God  had  imposed  on  meAtseemed  to  me  that  those~wfio 
HacT~ the  highest  reputation~were~  very  nearly  the  most 
deficient  of  all,  and  that  others  who  were  thoughtjnferior 

of  understanding.] 


came  nearer  being  men  ot  unaerstanaing.^^I  must  sho\ 
you,  you  see,  that  my  wanderings  were  a  kind  of  labour  of 
Hercules  to  prove  to  myself  that  the  oracle  was  right.  J 
filer  I  had  tried  the  statesmen  I  went  to  the  poets, —  22  B 
tragedians,  writers  of  lyrics,  and  all, — thinking  that  there  I 
should  take  myself  in  the  act  and  find  I  really  was  more 
ignorant  than  they.  So  I  took  up  the  poems  of  theirs  on 
which  they  seemed  to  have  spent  most  pains,  and  asked 
them  what  they  meant,  hoping  to  learn  something  from 
them  too.  Now  I  am  really  ashamed  to  tell  you  the 
truth;  but  tell  it  I  must.  On  the  whole,  almost  all  the, 
bystanders  could  have  spoken  better~about  the  poems~thrm 
the  men  who  made  therm  So  here  again  I  soon  per¬ 
ceived  that  what  the  poets  make  is  not  made  by  wisdom, 
but  by  a  kind  of  gift  and  inspiration,  as  with  the  prophets  22  C 
and  the  seers  :  they,  too,  utter  many  glorious  sayings, 
but  they  understand  nothing  of  what  they  say.  The 
poets  seemed  to  me  in  much  the  same  state ;  and  besides, 

I  noticed  that  on  account  of  their  poetry  they  thought 
themselves  the  wisest  of  men  in  other  matters  too,  which 
they  werg__not.  So  I  left  them  also,  thinking  that 
h^^jTisFt.hp. "  same  advantage  Vover  them  as  over  t 
politicians. 

VIII.  Finally  I  turned  to  the  men  who  work  with 
their  hands.  I  was  conscious  I  knew  nothing  that  could  22  D 


j^· 


7° 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


δε  y  ηδη  ότι  ευρησοιμι  7 τολλά  και  καλά-  επισταμένους. 
και  τουτου  μέν  ουκ  εφευσθην,  άλλ’  ηπίσταντο  α  εγώ  ουκ 
- ηπιστάμην  καί  μου  ταυτη  σοφωτεροι  ησαν’  άλλ’,  ώ  αν- 
δρες  ’Αθηναίοι,  ταυτάν  μοι  έδοξαν  εχειν  αμάρτημα,  07 rep 
καί  οι  7 τοιηταί,  και  οι  αγαθοί  δημιουργοί’  διά  το  την 
τέχνην  καλώς  εξεργάζεσθαι  έκαστος  ηξίου  και  τάλλα  τά. 
μέγιστα  σοφώτατος  είναι,  και  αυτών  αυτή  η  πλημμέλεια 
2  2  Ε  i  κείνην  την  σοφίαν  άπέκρνπτεν’  ώστε  με  έμαυτον  αν  έρωταν 
υπέρ  του  χρησμού,  πάτερα  δεξαίμην  αν  ούτως  ώσπερ  έχω 
εχε ιν,  μήτε  τι  σοφός  ων  την  εκείνων  σοφίαν,  μήτε  αμαθής 
την  άμαθίαν,  η  άμφότερα  ά  εκείνοι  εχουσιν  έχειν.  άπε- 
κρινάμην  ουν  εμαυτω  και  τω  χρησμω,  ότι  μοι  λυσιτελει 
ώσπερ  έχω  έχειν. 

IX.  Έκ  ταυτησι  δη  της  εξετάσεως,  ω  άνδρες  * Αθηναίοι, 
23  Α,πολλαι  μεν  άπέχθειαί  μοι  γεγόνασι  |  καίοίαι  χαλεπωταται 
και  βαρυταται ,  ώστε  πολλάς  διαβολάς  απ’  αυτών  γεγονέναι, 
άνομα  δε  τούτο  λέγεσθαι,  σοφός  είναι.  οίονται  γάρ  με 
εκάστοτε  οί  πα ράντες  ταυτα  αυτόν  είναι  σοφάν,  ά  αν  άλλον 
εξελέγξω’  το  δε  κινδυνεύει,  ω  άνδρες,  τω  οντι  δ  θεός  σοφός 
είναι,  και  εν  τω  χρησμω  τουτω  τούτο  λέγειν,  άτι  η 
ανθρώπινη  σοφία  ολίγου  τίνος  αξία  εστί  και  ουδενάς. 
και  φαίνεται  τουτ  ου  λέγειν  τον  Σωκράτη,  προσκεχρησθαι 
δε  τω  έμω  ονάματι,  εμέ  παράδειγμα  ποιούμενος,  ώσπερ  άν 
23  Βει  είποι  άτι  ovros  υμών,  ω  άνθρωποι,  σοφωτατάς  έστιν, 
άστις  ώσπερ  Σωκράτης  έγνωκεν  άτι  ουδενός  άξιός  εστι  τη 
άληθεία  προς  σοφίαν,  ταΰτ’  ουν  εγώ  μέν  ετι  και  νυν 
περιιων  ζητώ  και  ερευνώ  κατά  τον  θεάν,  και  των  αστών  και 
ξένων  άν  τινα  οίωμαι  σοφόν  είναι'  και  έπειδάν  μοι  μη 
δοκη,  τω  θεω  βοηθών  ενδείκνυμαι  άτι  ουκ  εστι  σοφάς,  και 
υπό  ταυτης  της  ασχολίας  ούτε  τι  των  της  πάλεως  πράξαί 
23  Oot  σχολή  γέγονεν  άξιον  λόγου  ούτε  των  οικείων ,  άλλ’  εν 
πενία  μυρία  είμΐ  διά  την  τοΐ)  θεού  λατρείαν. 


THE  APOLOGY 


be  called  anything  ;  and  I  was  quite  sure  I  should  find 
that  they  knew  a  great  many  wonderful  things.  And^\  Jt  J 


1)W 


injJiis  I  was  not  disappointed  ;  they  did  know  things  that 
I  did  not,  and  in  this  they  were  wiser  than  me.  But  then, 
gentlemen,  the  skilled  artisans  in  their  turn  seemed  to  me 
to  have  just  the  same  failing  as  the  poets.  Ber.anse_ofJiis  ' 

\s 


skill  in  his  own  craft  every  one  of  them  thought  that  he  was 
the  wisest  of  men  in  the  highest  matters  too,  and  this  error 
of  theirs  obscured  the  wisdom  they  possessed.  So  that  I  22  E 
asked  mysell,  on  behalf  ol  the  oracle,  whether  I  would  rather  TjJ*  β 
be  as  I  am,  without  their  wisdom  and  without  their  ignor- 
ance,  or  like  them  in  both.  And  I  answered  for  myself  and 
for  the  oracle  that  it  was  better  for  me  to  be  as  I  am.  / ajj 


IX.  It  was  this  inquiry,  men  of  Athens,  that  gave  rise  fofa 
to  so  much  enmity  against  me,  and  that  of  the  worst  and  23  At 
bitterest  kind :  a  succession  of  calumnies  followed,  and  I 
received  the  surname  of  the  Wise.  For  those  who  meet 
me  think  me  wise  wherever  I  refute  others ;  but,  sirsJ_lhe- 
*  truth  may  be  that  God  alone  has  wisdom,  and  by  that  oracle 
he  may  have  meant  just  this,  that  human  wisdom  is  of.little 
or  no  account^.  It  seems  as  though  he  had  not  been  speak¬ 
ing  of  Socrates  the  individual ;  but  had  merely  used  my 
name  for  an  illustration,  as  if  to  say  :  “  He,  O  men,  is 
the  wisest  of  you  all,  who  has  learnt,  like  Socrates,  that 


his  wisdom  is  worth  nothing.”  Such  has  been  my  search 
and  my  inquiry  ever  since  up  to  this  day,  in  obedience  ^ 
to  the  God,  whenever  I  found  any  one — fellow-citizen 
or  foreigner — who  might  be  considered  wise  :  and  if  he  did 
not  seem  so  to  me  I  have  borne  God  witness,  and  pointed 
out  to  him  that  he  was  not  wise  at  all.  And  through  this 
incessant  work  I  have  had  no  leisure  for  any  public  action  23  C 
worth  mentioning,  nor  yet  for  my  private  affairs,  but(  I 


72 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


X.  Προς  δε  τουτοις  οι  νέοι  ρ,οι  επακολουθουντες  οις 
μαλιστα  σχολή  εστιν,  οι  των  7 τλουσιωτάτων,  αυτόματοι, 
χαιρονσιν  ακουοντες  εξεταζόμενων  των  ανθρώπων ,  και 
αυτοί  πολλακις  εμε  μιμούνται ,  ειτα  επιχειρουσιν  άλλους 
εξεταζειν  καπειτα,  οιμαι,  ευρίσκουσι  πολλην  αφθονίαν 
οιομενων  μεν  ειδεναι  τι  ανθρώπων,  είδοτων  δε  ολίγα  η  ουδεν. 
εντεύθεν  ονν  οΐ  υπ  αυτών  εξεταζόμενοι  εμοι  οργίζονται,  1 

2  3  Ο  αλλ  ονχ  αυτοΐς,  και  λεγουσιν  ώς  Σωκράτης  τις  εστι 
μιαρωτατος  και  διαφθειρει  τους  νέους*  και  επειδάν  τις 
αυτους  έρωτα,  ό  τι  ποιων  και  δ  τι  διδάσκων,  εχουσι  μεν 
ουδεν  ειπείν,  αλλ  αγνοουσιν,  ινα  δε  μη  δοκωσιν  άπορεΐν, 
τα  κατα  πάντων  των  φιλοσοφουντων  πρόχειρα  ταΰτα  λε- 
γουσιν,  ότι  τα  μετεωρα  και  τα  υπό  γης,  και  θεούς  μη 
νόμιζε ιν,  και  τον  ηττω  λόγον  κρείττω  ποιείν.  τα  γαρ 
αληθη,  οιομαι,  ουκ  αν  εθελοιεν  λεγειν,  ότι  κατάδηλοι  γί- 
γνονται  προσποιούμενοι  μεν  ειδεναι,  ειδότες  δε  ουδεν.  άτε 

23  Ε  ου ν,  οΤμαι,  φιλότιμοι  όντες  και  σφοδροί  και  πολλοί,  και  ξυν- 

τεταγμενως  και  πιθανώς  λεγουτες  περί  εμού,  εμπεπληκασιν 
υμών  τα  ωτα  και  παλαι  και  νυν  σφοδρως  δια βάλλοντες. 
εκ  τούτων  και  Μελάτος  μοι  επεθετο  και  Άνυτος  και  Αυκων, 
Μ,ελητος  μεν  υπέρ  των  ποιητών  άχθόμενος,  ’ Άνυτος  δε  | 

24  Λ.  υπέρ  των  δημιουργών  και  των  πολίτικων,  Α,υκων  δε  υπέρ  των 

ρητόρων'  ώστε,  όπερ  αρχο μένος  εγώ  ελεγον,  θαυμάζοιμ  αν 
ει  οιος  τ’  ε'ίην  εγώ  υμών  τ αυτήν  την  διαβολην  εξελεσθαι  εν 
ούτως  ολιγω  χρονω  ουτω  πολλην  γεγονυΐαν.  ταΰτ’  εστιν 
υμίν,  ω  άνδρες  Αθηναίοι,  τάληθη,  και  υμάς  ούτε  μεγα  ούτε 
μικρόν  αποκρυφαμενος  εγώ  λέγω  οΰδ’  υποστειλάμενος’  καί 


THE  APOLOGY 


73 


live  in  extreme  poverty  because  of  this  service  of  mine  to 
God!  - - - - -  ^ 


X.  And  besides  this,  the  young  men  who  follow  me, 
those  who  have  most  leisure, — sons  of  our  wealthiest 
citizens, — they  take  a  keen  delight  themselves  in  hearing 
people  questioned,  and -they  nftpn  rnpy  ino  and  try  their 
hand  at  examining  others  on  their  own  account :  and,  1 


imagine,  they  find  no  lack  of  men  who  think  they  know 
something  but  know  little  qi^  nothing  at  all.  Now  thqsg^^>  ^ 
whom  they  examine  get  angry — not  w^h  themselves,  but 


with  me — and  say  that  there  is  a  man  called  Socrates,  an 
utter  scoundrelT  who  is  ruining  ynnng  And  when  any 
one  asks  them  what  he  does  or  what  he  teaches,  they 
have  really ^nothing- whatever  to  say,  but  so  as  not  to 
seem  at  a  loss  they  take  up  the  accusations  that  lie  ready  jj  .  · 
Inst ^11 1  philosophers,  and  say  that  he  speaks 


to  hand  against  _ t 

of  the  things  in  the  heavens  and  beneath  the  earth  ant 
teaches  men  not  to  believe  in  the  Gods  and  to  make 
worse~AH5eax  ~  the  better  reason.  The  truth,  I  imaging, 
they  would  not  care  to  say,  namely,  that  they  have  been/^ 
convicted  of  claiming  knowledge  when  they  have  none  to 
claim.  And  being,  as  I  think  they  are,  ambitious,  ener-23  E 
getic,  and  numerous,  weTPorganised  and  using  great  powers 


oL'persuasion,  they  have~goiie  on  calumniating  imr-w-ith  q 
«dffgubr  ppfg^Tr^  and  vigour  ti11  y^r  ^nrs  are  full  of  it 
alh-<AFter  them  Meletus  attacked  me  and  Anytiis  and  itulfd 
Lycon, — Meletus  on  behalf  of  the  poets,  Anytus  for 
artisans  and  the  statesmen,  Lycon  for  the  orators, — so  that,  24'A?^- 
as  I  said  at  first,  I  should  be  greatly  surprised  if  in  the 
ehort  time  before  me  I  could  remove  the  prejudice  that 
has  grown_to  he  sn  grqat.  There,  men  of  Athens,  that  is  \ 
the  truth  ; — I  have  not  hidden  one  thing  from  you,  great 
or  small ;  I  have  not  kept  back  one  word.  Yet  I  am  fairly 
sure  that  I  have  roused  hostility  by  so  doing,  which  is  in 


>\ 


4r 


74 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


rot  οιδα  σχεδόν  ό'τι  τοίς  αυτοις  άπεχθάνομαι'  ο  καί  τεκ 
μηρών  ότι  αληθή  λέγω  καί  οτι  α ντη  εστιν  ή  διαβολή  ή 
24  Β  εμή  καί  τα  αίτια  ταυτά  εστιν.  καί  εάν  τε  νυν  εάν  τε  ανθις 
ζητήσητε  ταΰτα ,  όντως  ενρήσετε. 

XI.  Περί  ρ,εν  ουν  ών  οί  πρώτοι  μον  κατήγοροι  κατη¬ 
γορούν  α  ντη  εστιν  Ικανή  απολογία  προς  υμάς'  προς  δέ 
Μελ^τον  τον  αγαθόν  τε  καί  φιλοπολιν ,  ως  φησι ,  καί  τους 
υστέρους  μετά  ταυτα  πειράσομ αι  άπολογείσθαι.  ανθις 
γαρ  δή,  ώσπερ  ετέρων  τούτων  όντων  κατηγόρων ,  λάβω  μεν 
αυ  ττ^ν  τούτων  άντωμοσί αν.  έχει  δε'  7τως  ώδε*  Σωκράτη 
φησιν  άδικείν  τους  τε  νε'ους  διαφθείροντα  καί  0εους  ους  ^ 

24  C  πόλις  νομίζει  ον  νομιζοντα ,  ετερα  δέ  δαιμόνια  καινά,  το 
μεν  δη  έγκλημα  τοιοντον  εστιν'  τουτου  δε  του  εγκλήματος 
εν  έκαστον  εζετασωμεν.  φησι  γαρ  δτ/  τους  νε'ους  άδικείν 
με  διαφθείροντα.  εγώ  δέ  γε,  ώ  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  άδικείν 
φημι  Μέλ^τον,  οτι  σπονδή  χαριεντίζεται ,  ραδίως  εις  αγώνας 
καθιστάς  άνθρωπονς,  περί  πραγμάτων  προσποιούμενος 
σπονδάζειν  και  κήδεσθαι,  ών  ουδέν  τουτω  πωποτε  εμελησεν. 
ως  δε  τοντο  ούτως  εχει,  πειράσομαι  και  νμίν  επιδείζαι. 

XII.  Καί  ρ,οι  δεύρο,  ώ  Μέλστε,  είπε’  άλλο  τι  ή  περί 
2  4  D  πολλοί)  ποιεί,  όπως  ως  βέλτιστοι  οι  νεωτεροι  εσονται; 

Εγωγε.  νΙ0ι  δί)  νυν  είπέ  τούτο  ις,  τις  α  ντους  βελτίονς 
ποιεί ;  δήλον  γαρ  ότι  οίσθα,  μελον  γε  σοι.  τον  μεν  γαρ 
διαφθείροντα  εζενρων  ως  φής  εμε  εισάγεις  τουτοΐσί  καί 
κατηγορείς'  τον  δε  δη  βελτίονς  ποιονντα  ιθι  είπε  και  μήνυ¬ 
σαν  αυτοις,  τις  εστιν.  όρας,  ώ  Μ ελητε,  ότι  σιγάς  καί  ουκ 
έχεις  είπείν ;  καί  το ι  ουκ  αισχρόν  σοι  δοκεί  είναι  και  ικανόν 
τεκμήριον  ου  δη  εγώ  λέγω,  ότι  σοι  ουδέν  μεμεληκεν ;  άλλ’ 
είπε,  ώγα0έ,  τις  αυτους  άμείνονς  ποιεί ;  Οί  νόμοι.  Άλλ’ 
24  Ε  ου  τοντο  ερωτω,  ώ  βέλτιστε,  άλλα  τις  άνθρωπος,  οστις 


THE  AP 


itself  a  proof  that  what  I  say  is  true,  and 
against  me  are  of  this  nature,  and  the  reasons  those  I  have 
given.  And  if  you  look  into  the  matter, — now  or  after-  24  B 
wards, — you  will  find  it  to  be  so. 

XI.  Well,  that  is  a  sufficient  defence  in  answer  to  my 
first  accusers.  Now  I  must  try  to  defend  myself  against 
Meletus, — the  good  man  and  the  patriot,  as  he  calls  himself, 

—and  the  rest  who  followed.  These  are  my  second 
accusers,  and  let  us  take  up  their  affidavit  in  its  turn  It  runs 
somewhat  as  follows  :  Meletus  asserts  that  Socrates  is  guilty 
of  corrupting  the  young  and~not  believing  IrTthe  Gods  in  ^ 
whomthecity  believes,  but  in  some  sUdilge  divuiilica^  That 2  4 
is  the  sort  of  charge,  and  let  us  take  it  point  by  point.  He 
does  really  say  that  I  am  guilty  of  corrupting  the  young. 

But  I  answer,  men  of  Athens,  that  Meletus  is  guilty  of  an 
unseemly  jest,  bringing  men  to  trial  on  a  frivolous  chaige, 
pf-ptpnrling  that  hp^cares  intensely  about  matters  on  which 
he  has _never  spenta~thoughG  That  this  is  so  I  will  try 
to  prove. 

XII.  Come  here,  Meletus,  and  tell  me:  you  really 
think  it  nf  importance  that  our  young  men  should  be  as 
good  as  possible  ?  “  I  dfljudecd.”  Well,  will  you  tell  the  24  H 
court  who  it  is  that  makes  them  better  ?  It  is  plainj:hat  .you  ^ 
must  know  since  you  have  given  die  matter_UiQiight.  x  Y°u\ 
have  found,  so  you  say,  the  man  who  corrupts  them  in  me  ; 

1  1  J  1 _ ♦- τ·ΐ ο  1  K^fXrp  f-lyp.QP  /  /  ✓ 


you  have  accused  me  and  brought  me  to  trial  befoie  these 


judges :  go  on  and  point  out  to  them  who  it  is  that  makes 
them  beften  See,  Meletus,  you  lire  silent  and  have  not  a^ 
word  to  say" :  and  now,  are  you  not  ashamed  ?  Is 
this  proof  enough  of  what  I  say,  that  you  have  never 


not  Λ  ^ 


thought  of  it  at  all?  Yet  once  more,  my  friend,  I  ask 

you,  who  is  it  makes  them  better  ?  “  The  laws.”  No,  24  E  S* 

I  ask  :  I  ask  what  man 


my  good  fellow,  that  is  not  what 


C 


10ΓΙΑ 


-  ·  -  ντο  οΐόε,  τους  νόμους.  Ο υτοι,  ω  Έ,ωκρα- 
tcs,  ol  όικασται.  Πώς  λεγεις,  ώ  Μελάτε ;  οίδε  τους  νεονς 
παιδευειν  οιοι  re  εισι  και  βελτίους  ποιουσιν  ;  Μάλιστα. 
ΙΙοτερου  άπαντες,  η  οι  μεν  αυτών,  ο ί  8’  ου;  "Άπαντες. 
Ευ  γε  νι j  την  Ηραυ  λεγεις,  και  πολλην  αφθονίαν  των 
ωφελουντων.  tl  δε  δη ;  οιδε  ol  ακροαταί  βελτίους  ποιοΰσι ν, 
25  Α.  |  η  ου;  Και  ουτοι.  1ι  δε  οι  βουλευταί ;  Και  οί /3ουλευται. 
Αλλ  αρα,  ω  Μελάτε,  μη  ol  iv  τη  εκκλησία,  οι  εκκλησ ια- 
σται,  διαφθειρουσι  τους  νεωτερους ;  η  κάκεΐνοι  βελτίονς 
ποιουσιν  ατταυτες ;  Κακειυοι.  Πάυτες  αρα,  ώς  εοικεν, 
Αθηναίοι  καλούς  καγαθους  ποιοΰσι  πλην  εμού,  εγώ  δε 
μονος  διαφθειρω.  ουτω  λεγεις ;  ΐίάνυ  σφοδρά  ταυ  τα 
λέγω.  Πολλοί/  γε  ρ,ου  κατεγνωκας  δυστυχίαν,  καί  μοι 
2  5  Β  αποκριναΐ’  η  και  περί  ίππους  ουτω  σοι  δοκέ ι  εχειν'  οι  μεν 
βελτίους  ποιοΰντες  αυτους  πάντες  άνθρωποι  είναι,  εις  Sc 
τις  ό  δια φθείρων ;  η,  τουναντίον  τουτου  παν,  εις  μεν  τις 
ο  βελτιους  οιος  τ’  ών  ποιεΐν  η  πανυ  ολίγοι,  οι  ιππικοί, 
οι  δε  πολλοί,  εανπερ  ί,υνωσι  και  χρωνται  ϊπποις,  δια- 
φθειρουσιν ;  ουχ  ούτως  εχει,  ω  Μ ελητε,  και  περί  ίππων 
και  των  άλλων  απαντων  ζωων ;  πάντως  δηπου,  εάν  τε  σύ 
και  Αυυτος  ου  φητε  εαν  τε  φητε’  πολλή  γάρ  άν  τις  ευδαι¬ 
μονία  ειη  περί  τους  νέους,  ει  εις  μεν  μόνος  αυτους  δια- 
2  5  C  φθείρει,  οι  δ’  άλλοι  ωφελοΰσιν.  άλλα  γάρ,  ω  Μελητε, 
ικανως  επιδεικνυσαι  οτι  ουδεπωποτε  εφρόντισας  των  νέων, 
και  σαφώς  αποφαινεις  την  σαυτοΰ  αμέλειαν,  ότι  ουδεν 
σοι  μεμεληκεν  περί  ων  εμε  εισάγεις. 


THE  APOLOGY 


77 


makes  them  better,  and  he,  of  course,  must  kil0W 


the  laws  already.  “Well  then,  Socrates,  I  say  thele 
judges  are  the  men.”  Really,  Meletus,  can  these  men  really  x 
teach  our  youth  and  make  them  better  ?  “  Most  certainly  ^ 

they  can.”  All  of  them,  do  you  mean,  or  only  some  ?  \ 

All  nf  tVipm  ”  S-nlpndirl  I  Snlpnrlid  I  ΛΛ7Ί-ιηί·  n  ί^ρ^Ιι-Ιί  \ 


All  of  them.”  Splendid  !  Splendid  !  What  a  wealth 
of  benefactors  !  And  what  of  the  audience  ?  Can  they 
do  so  or  not  ?  “  Yes,  they  can  do  so  too.”  And  what  2  5  A 

about  the  Councillors?  “Yes,  the  Councillors  too.” 

Well,  Meletus,  what  of  the  Assembly  and  those  who  sit 
there  ?  They  do  not  corrupt  our  young  men,  I  suppose  ? 

All  of  them  too,  you  would  say,  make  them  better  ? 
“Yes,  all  of  them  too.”  Then  it  really  seems  that  all 
the  Athenians  except  me  can  make  men  good,  Imd 

? 


\ 


that  I  alone  coiTpp*-  ti-tpm-  Is  that  what  you  mean 
“That  is  exactly  what  I  mean.”  What  a  dreadful 
fate  to  be  cursed  with  !  But  answer  me  :  have  you  the  same 
opinion  in  the  case  of  horses  ?  Do  you  think  that  those  2  5  B 
who  make  them  better  consist  of  all  mankind,  with  the 
exception  of  one  single  individual  who  ruins  them  ?  Or,  on 
the  contrary,  that  there  is  only  one  man  who  can  do  them 
good,  or  very,  very  few,  the  men,  namely,  who  understand  , 
them  ?  And  that  "most  people,  if  they  use  horsrsnnrl  hn  ve  . 

to  do  with  them,  ruin  them  ?  Is  it  not  so,  Meletus,  with 
horses  and  all  other  animals  too  ?  Of  course  it  is,  whether 
you  and  Anytus  admit  it  or  not.  It  would  be  well,  and 
more  than  well,  with  our  youth  if  there  was  only  one  man  to 
corrupt  them  and  all  the  others  did  them  good.  However,  2  78·^ 

Meletus,  you  show  us  clearly  enough  that  you  have  never  -  ' 

considered  our  young  men  :  you  have  made  it  quite  plain 
that  you  care  nothing  about  them,  that  you  have  never  given 
a  thought  to  the  cause  for  which  you  have  brought  me  here. 


% 


/ 


78 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


τΙΙΙΙ.  Ετι  δε  ημΐν  είπε,  ω  προς  Διός  MeX^re,  πότερον 
ν  yjTiv  οικεΐν  αμεινον  εν  πολιταις  χρηστοΐς  η  πονηροΐς ;  ω 
/τα  ι/,  αποκριναι’  ουδεν  γαρ  τοι  χαλεπόν  ερωτώ.  ουχ  ol  μεν 
/  πονηροί  κακόν  τι  εργάζονται  τους  αεί  εγγυτάτω  Εαυτών 
όντας,  οι  δ’  αγαθοί  αγαθόν  τι;  ΤΙάνν  ye.  ’Έστιν  ονν 
25  Doans  βουλετα  ι  υπό  των  ξννόντων  βλά  πτεσθαι  μάλλον  rj 
ωφελεισθαι ;  αποκρινον,ω  αγαθέ’  καί  yap  ο  νόμος  κελεύει 
άποκρίνεσθαι.  εσ&  οστις  βούλεται  βλάπτεσθαι ;  Ον  δητα. 
Φερε  8ύ],  ποτερον  εμε  εισάγεις  δεύρο  ώς  διαφθείροντα  τονς 
νεωτερους  και  πονηρότερους  ποιουντα  εκόντα  η  άκοντα ; 
Εκοντα  εγωγε.  Τι  δητα,  ω  Μελάτε;  τοσουτον  συ  εμον 
σοφώτερος  ει  τηλικουτου  όντος  τηλικόσδε  ών,  ώστε  σύ  μεν 
εγνωκας  ο  τι  οι  μεν  κακοί  κακόν  τι  εργάζονται  αεί  τοίΐξ 
2  5  Ε  μαλιστα  πλησίον  εαυτών ,  οι  δε  αγαθοί  αγαθόν,  εγώ  δε  δί/ 
εις  τοσουτον  αμαθιας  ηκω,  ώστε  και  τουτ  αγνοώ,  ότι,  εάν 
τινα  μοχθηρόν  ποιήσω  των  ζυνοντων,  κινδυνεύσω  κακόν  τι 
λαβεΐν  υπ’  αυτοί),  ώστε  τούτο  το  τοσουτον  κακόν  εκών 
ποιώ,  ως  φης  συ;  ταυτα  εγω  σοι  ου  πείθομαι,  ω  Με'λ^τε, 
οΐμαι  δε  ουδέ  άλλον  ανθρώπων  ουδενα'  άλλ ’  η  ου  δια  φθείρω, 
2  6  A  r]  et  διαφθειρω,  |  α κων,  ώστε  συ  γε  κατ  άμφότερα  ψευδει. 


ει  δε  α  κων  διαφθειρω,  των  τοιουτων  καί  ακουσίων  αμαρ¬ 
τημάτων  ου  δεύρο  νόμος  εισάγειν  εστίν,  άλλ*  ιδία  λαβόντα 
διδασκειν  και  νουθετε ΐν’  δηλον  γαρ  ότι,  εάν  μάθω,  παυσομαι 
ο  γε  α  κων  ποιώ,  συ  δε  ζυγγενεσθαι  μεν  μοι  και  διδάξαι 
εφυγες  και  ουκ  ηθελησας,  δεύρο  δε  εισάγεις,  οι  νόμος  εστιν 
εισάγειν  τους  κολάσεως  δεόμενους,  άλλ’  ου  μαθησεως. 


8o 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


XIV.  Άλλα  γάρ,  ω  άνδρες  ’Αθηναίοι,  τοντο  μεν  8ηλον 
2  6  Β  η8η  εστίν,  ο  εγώ  ελεγον,  ότι  Μελετώ  τούτων  ούτε  μ,έγα 
ούτε  μικρόν  πωποτε  εμελησεν'  όμως  δε  8η  λέγε  ημίν,  πως 
με  φης  8ιαφθείρειν,  ω  Μελάτε,  τους  νεωτερονς ;  η  8ηλον 
8η  οτι,  κατά  την  γραφήν  ην  εγράφω,  θεονς  διδάσκοντα  μη 
νομιζειν  ονς  η  πόλις  νομίζει,  ετερα  8ε  8αιμόνια  καινά;  ον 
ταντα  λέγεις  οτι  διδάσκων  8ιαφθείρω ;  Πάνυ  μεν  ονν 
σφ68ρα  ταντα  λέγω,  Προς  αυτών  τοίννν,  ω  Μελητε,  τούτων 
των  θεών,  ων  νυν  6  λόγος  εστίν,  είπε  ετι  σα φεστερον  και 
26  C  εμοί  και  τοΐς  άνδράσιν  τοντο ις.  εγώ  γάρ  ον  δυν αμαι  μαθεΐν, 
πότερον  λέγεις  διδάσκειν  ρ,ε  νομιζειν  είναι  τινάς  θεονς,  και 
αυτός  άρα  νομίζω  είναι  0εους  και  ουκ  εΐρ,ϊ.  το  παράπαν  άθεος 
ουδέ  ταντη  αδικώ,  ου  μεντοι  ονσπερ  γε  ή  πόλις,  άλλα  ετέρους, 
και  τοΰτ’  εστιν  ό  μοι  έγκαλεις,  ότι  ετέρους’  τ)  παντάπασί  με 
φης  ούτε  αυτόν  νομιζειν  θεονς  τους  τε  άλλους  ταντα  διδά- 
σκε ιν.  Ταυτα  λέγω,  ως  τό  παράπαν  ον  νομίζεις  θεονς.  *Ω 
26Ό#αυ/χάσιε  Μέλστε,  Γνα  τι  ταντα  λέγεις;  ουδέ  ήλιον  ουδέ 
σελήνήν  άρα  νομίζω  θεονς  είναι,  ώσπερ  οι  άλλοι  άνθρωποι ; 
Μά  Δι’,  ώ  άνδρες  δικασται,  ε’πεϊ.  τον  ρ,έν  ήλιον  λίθον  φησίν 
είναι,  την  8ε  σελήνήν  γην.  Άναζα γόρον  οίει  κατηγορεΐν, 
ω  φίλε  Μελάτε,  και  οντω  καταφρονείς  τώνδε  και  οιει  αυτους 
άπειρους  γραμμάτων  είναι,  ώστε  ουκ  εΐδέναι  ότι  τα  Άνα£α- 
γόρου  βιβλία  τον  Κλαζομενών  γεμει  τούτων  των  λόγων; 
και  δτ;  και  οί  νέοι  ταυτα  παρ’  έρ,ου  μανθάνονσιν,  ά  εζεστιν 
ενίοτε,  εί  πάνυ  πολλοί),  8ραχμης  εκ  της  ορχήστρας  πριαμε- 
2  6  Ε  νοις  ^ ωκράτονς  καταγελάν,  εάν  προσποιηται  εαντον  είναι, 
άλλως  τε  και  όντως  άτοπα  όντα,  άλλ’  ώ  προς  Διός,  ούτωσι 


ι 

I 


THE  APOLOGY 


81 


or-. 


XIV.  Well,  men  of  Athens,  it  has  been  plain  for  26  B 
some  time  that  Meletus,  as  I  say,  has  never  spent  a  thought 
on  these  matters, — not  one,  great  or  small.  Nevertheless, 
you  must  tell  us,  Meletus,  how  you  think  I  corrupt  the 
youth.  No  doubt,  as  you  say  in  the  indictment,  by  teaching 
them  not  to  believe  in  the  Gods  in  whom  our  city  believes 
but  in  some  new  divinities.  Is  not  that  how  you  say  I 
ruin  them  ?  “Certainly,  I  do  say  so,  as  strongly  as  I  can.” 

Then,  in  the  name  of  those  Gods  of  whom  we  speak, 
explain  yourself  more  clearly  to  me  and  to  the  court.  26  C 
I  have  not  been  able  to  discover  whether  you  say  I  teach 
belief  in  divinities  of  some  kind,  in  which  case  I  do 
after  all  believe  in  Gods,  and  am  not  an  utter  atheist,  and 
so  far  1  am  not  guilty ;  mly  they  are  not  the  Gods  in 
which  the  city  believes,  they  are  quite  different,  and  that 
is  your  charge  against  me.  Or  perhaps  youT  mean  to  say 
that  I  do  not  believe  in  Gods  of  any  kind,  and  that  I 
teach  others  so.  “  Yes,  that  is  what  I  say  ;  you  do  not 
believe  in  them  at  all.”  Meletus,  Meletus,  you  astound 
me.  What  makes  you  say  so?  Then  I  do  not  even  26  D 
believe  that  the  sun  and  the  moon  are  Gods  as  other  men 
believe  ?  “  Most  certainly,  gentlemen  of  the  court,  most 

certainly ;  for  he  says  the  sun  is  stone  and  the  moon 
earth.”  My  dear  Meletus,  do  you  imagine  you  are  attack¬ 
ing  Anaxagoras  ?  Or  do  you  think  so  little  of  the  jury, 
do  you  fancy  them  so  illiterate  as  not  to  know  that  the 
books  of  Anaxagoras,  the  philosopher  of  Clazomenae,  are 
full  of  all  these  theories  ?  The  young  men,  we  are  to  suppose, 
learn  them  all  from  me,  when  they  can  buy  them  in  the 
theatre  for  tenpence  at  the  most  and  laugh  at  Socrates  if  he  26  E 
should  pretend  that  they  were  his,  especially  when  they  are 
so  extraordinary.  Now  tell  me  in  heaven’s  name,  is  this 


G 


82 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


σοι  δοκώ  ;  ούδενα  νομίζω  θεόν  είναι ;  Ου  μεντοι  μα  Δί’  ουδ’ 
οπωστίονν.  ’Άπιστός  γ’  ει,  ώ  Μελάτε,  καί  ταύτα  μεντοι, 
ως  εμοί  δοκεΐς,  σαυτω.  εμοί  yap  δοκεΐ  ούτοσί,  ώ  άνδρες 
Αθηναίοι,  πάνν  είναι  υβριστής  καί  ακόλαστο?,  και  άτεχνώς 
την  γραφήν  ταύτην  ύβρει  τινι  και  ακολασία  και  νεότητι 
27  Α  γράφασθαι.  εοικεν  yap  ώσπερ  |  αίνιγμα  ζυντιθεντι  δια- 
πειρωμενω,  i  αρα  γνωσεται  Σωκράτης  ό  σοφός  δη  εμού 
χαριεντιζόμενου  και  έναντι  εμαντω  λεγοντος,  η  εζαπατησω 
αυτόν  και  τους  άλλους  τους  ακούοντας ;  ’  ούτος  γάρ  εμοί 
φαίνεται  τα  εναντία  λεγειν  αυτό?  εαυτω  εν  τη  γραφή,  ώσπερ 
αν  ει  ειπου  αοικει  Σωκράτης  υεους  ου  νομιζων ,  αλλα  υεους 
νομίζων.  καί  το ι  τούτο  εστι  παίζοντος. 

XV.  Ευνεπισκεψασθε  δύ},  ω  άνδρες,  η  μοι  φαίνεται 
ταύτα  λεγειν *  συ  δε  ημίν  άπόκριναι,  ω  Μ ελητε·  υμείς  δε, 
27  Β  οπερ  κατ’  άρχάς  υμάς  παρητησάμην,  μεμνησθε  μοι  μη 
θορυβείν,  εάν  εν  τω  ειωθυτι  τρόπω  τούς  λόγους  ποιώμαι. 
εστιν  όστις  ανθρώπων,  ώ  Μ ελητε,  άνθρώπεια  μεν  νομίζει 
πράγματ’  είναι,  ανθρώπους  δε  ου  νομίζει ;  άποκρινεσθω,  ώ 
α νδρες,  καί  μη  αλλα  και  αλλα  θορυβείτω’  εσθ’  οστις  ίππους 
μεν  ου  νομίζει,  ιππικό,  δε  πράγματα ;  η  αυλητάς  μεν  ου 
νομίζει  είναι,  αύλητικά  δε  πράγματα  ;  ουκ  εστιν,  ώ  άριστε 
άνδρών  ει  μη  συ  βούλει  άποκρίνεσθαι,  εγώ  σοι  λέγω  καί 
27  C  τοίς  άλλοις  τούτο ισί.  άλλα  τό  επί  τούτω  γε  άπόκριναι * 
εσθ’  όστις  δαιμόνια  μεν  νομίζει  πράγματ’  είναι,  δαίμονας 
δε  ου  νομίζει ;  Ουκ  εστιν.  ‘Ως  ώνησας,  ότι  μόγις  άπεκρίνω 
υπό  τουτωνί  αναγκαζόμενος,  ουκούν  δαιμόνια  μεν  φης  μ ε 
καί  νομίζειν  καί  διδάσκειν ;  εΐτ  ούν  καινά  είτε  παλαιό,  άλλ ’ 
ουν  δαιμόνιά  γε  νομίζω  κατά  τον  σόν  λόγον,  καί  ταύτα  καί 
διωμόσω  εν  τη  αντιγραφή.  εί  δε  δαιμόνια  νομίζω,  καί 


THE  APOLOGY 


83 


really  what  you  think  ? — that  I  believe  in  no  God  at  all  ? 

“  In  none  at  all.”  I  cannot  believe  you,  Meletus,  I  can¬ 
not  think  you  can  believe  yourself.  ^Men  of  Athens,  I  think 
this  man  an  audacious  scoundrel,  I  consider  he  has  framed  _ 
this  indictment  in  a  spirit  of  sheer  insolence,  agoresskin, 
and  arrogance.  One  would  think  he  was  speaking  in  riddles,  27  A 
to  try  “  whether  the  wise  Socrates  will  discover  that  I  am 
jesting  and  contradicting  myself,  or  whether  I  shall 
deceive  him  and  all  who  hear  me.”  For  he  surely 
contradicts  himself  in  his  own  indictment,  almost  as  if  he 
said :  “  Socrates  is  guilty  of  not  believing  in  Gods  but 
believing  in  them.”  Such  words  can  only  be  in  jest. 

XV.  Look  at  the  matter  with  me,  gentlemen  of  the 
court,  and  see  how  it  appears  to  me.  And  you  must 
answer  us,  Meletus,  and  you,  sirs,  I  ask  you,  as  I  asked 
you  at  first,  not  to  interrupt  me  if  I  put  the  questions  27  B 
in  my  usual  way.  Now  is  there  any  man,  Meletus,  7 
who  helieves  that  human  things  exist,  but  not  human  j  2 
beings  ?  Let  him  answer,  sirs,  do  not  allow  him 
onTyTO- interrupt.  Is  there  any  one  who  does  not 
believe  in  horses  but  does  believe  in  their  trappings  ?  te 
Or  who  does”  not  believe  in  flute-players  but  does 
believe  in  flutes  ?  There  cannot  be,  my  worthy  man  ; 
for  if  you  will  not  answer,  I  must  tell  you  myself  and  7 

tell  the  court  as  well.  But  answer  this  at  least  there  2 7  C 
any  one  who  believes  in  things  divine  and  disbelieves 
in  divinities  ?  “  No,  there  is  not.”  How  kind  of  you 

to  answer  at  last,  under  pressure  from  the  court !  Well,  y 
you  admit  that  I  believe  in  things  divine,  and  that  I  teach  /  *7. 
others  so.  They  may  be  new  or  they  may  be  old,  but  at 
the  least,  according  to  your  own  admission,  I  do  believe  in 
things  that  are  divine,  and  you  have  sworn  to  this  in  your 
deposition.  And  if  I  believe  in  things  divine  I  must 


«y 


BOSTON  COLL  ‘ 

FACULTY  LIBRARY 

CHESTNUT  HILl-,  MA  ^ 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


84 

δαίμονας  δηπον  πολλή  ανάγκη  νόμιζαν  με  εστιν*  ονχ  όν¬ 
τως  εχει ;  εχει  δη’  τίθημι  γάρ  σε  όμολογονντα ,  επειδή  ονκ 

27  D  άποκρίνει.  τους  δε  δαίμονας  ονχι  ήτοι  θεούς  γε  ηγούμεθα 

Ά  Λ  Λ  I  \  η\  V  ΓΤ  I  3  «  V  / 

τ;  ί;εων  παιΟας ;  <ρτ^ς  7)  ου ;  Ιΐανυ  γε.  Ουκουν  ειπερ  δαί¬ 
μονας  ηγούμαι,  ως  συ  φης,  εί  μεν  θεοί  τινες  είσιν  οι  δαί¬ 
μονες,  τοντ  αν  εΐη  δ  εγώ  φημί  σε  αΐνίττεσθαι  και  χαριεν- 
τίζεσθαι,  θεονς  ονχ  ηγούμενον  φάναι  εμε  θεονς  αν  ηγεΐσθαι 
πάλιν,  επειδηπερ  γε  δαίμονας  ηγούμαι'  εί  δ’  αΰ  οί  δαίμονες 
θεών  παΐδες  είσι  νόθοι  τινες  η  εκ  ννμφών  η  εκ  τινων  άλλων, 
ων  δη  και  λέγονται,  τίς  αν  ανθρώπων  θεών  μεν  παΐδας 
ηγοΐτο  είναι,  θεονς  δε  μη ;  ομοίως  γάρ  αν  άτοπον  εΐη, 
2  7  Ε  ώσπερ  αν  εί  τις  ίππων  μεν  παΐδας  ηγοΐτο  η  και  όνων  [τους 
ημιόνονς ,]  ίππονς  δε  καί  όνονς  μη  ηγοίίτο  είναι,  άλλ’,  ω 
Μελάτε,  ονκ  εστιν  όπως  συ  ταΰτα  ονχΐ  αποπειρώμενος 
ημών  εγράφω  την  γραφήν  ταντην,  η  απορών  ό  τι  εγκαλοΐς 
εμοίι  αληθές  αδίκημα’  όπως  δέ  συ  τινα  πείθοις  αν  καί 
σμικρόν  νουν  εχοντα  ανθρώπων,  ως  ον  τον  αντον  εστιν  καί 
δαιμόνια  καί  θεία  <  καί  δαίμονας  και  θεονς  >  ηγεΐσθαι,  καί 
αυ  του  αΰτοΰ  <  μήτε  δαιμόνια  μήτε  θεία  >  μήτε  δαίμονας 

28  Α  μήτε  θεονς  [ μήτε  |  ηρω ας,]  ονδεμία  μηχανη  εστιν. 

XVI.  Άλλα  γάρ,  ώ  άνδρες  ’Αθηναίοι,  ώς  μεν  εγώ  ονκ 
αδικώ  κατά  την  Μελ?;του  γραφήν,  ον  πολλής  μοι  δοκεΐ 
είναι  απολογίας,  άλλα  ικανά  καί  ταΰτα*  δ  δε  καί  εν  τοις 
έμπροσθεν  ελεγον,  ότι  πολλή  μοι  άπεχθεια  γεγονεν  και 
προς  πολλούς,  εν  ϊστε  οτι  αληθές  εστιν.  και  τοντ  εστιν 
δ  εμε  αιρησει,  εάνπερ  a ιρη,  ον  Μ ελητος  ουδέ  Άνυτος,  άλλ’ 
η  τών  πολλών  διαβολη  τε  καί  φθόνος,  α  δη  πολλούς  καί 
άλλους  καί  άγαμους  άνδρας  ηρηκεν,  οΐμαι  δε  καί  α ιρησειν’ 
28  ΐόονοεν  Οεοεινον  μη  εν  εμοιστη.  ίσως  ο  αν  ονν  ειποι  τις*  ειτ 


THE  APOLOGY 


85 


believe  in  divinities  as  well.  Is  that  not  so  ?  Indeed  it  is; 
for  since  you  will  not  answer  I  must  assume  that  you  assent.  27  D 
And  do  we  not  believe  that  divinities  are  Gods,  or  the 
sons  of  Gods?  You  admit  this?  “Yes,  certainly.” 
W&UL-now  if  I  believe  in  divinities,  as  you  grant  I  do,  and 
if  divinities  are  Gods  of  some  kind,  then  this  is  what  I  meant 
when  I  said  you  were  speaking  in  riddles  and  jesting  with 
us,  saying  that  I  do  not  believe  in  (Jods  and  yet  again  that 
I  do,  since  I  believe  in  divinities.  Again  if  these  divinities 
are  the  bastards  of  the  Gods,  with  nymphs  and  other 
women  for  their  mothers,  as  people  say  they  are, —  what 
man  is  there  who  could  helipve  in  sons  nf  Gods  and  not  in 
Gods?  It  would  be  as  absurd  as  to  believe  in  the  offspring  27  E 
of  horses  and  of  asses,  and  not  believe  in  horses  and  asses 
too.  No,  Meletus,  it  can  only  be  that  you  were  testing 
me  when  you  drew  up  that  charge,  or  else  it  was  because 
you  could  find  nothing  to  accuse  me  of  with  any  truth. 

There  is  no  possible  way  by  which  you  could  persuade 
any  man  of  the  least  intelligence  to  doubt  that  he  who 
believes  in  things  divine  and  godlike  must  believe  in 
divinities  and  Gods,  while  he  who  disbelieves  the  one 
must  disbelieve  the  other.  28  A 

XVI.  However,  men  of  Athens,  I  do  not  think 
much  defence  is  needed  to  show  that  I  am  innocent  of 
the  charge  Meletus  has  made ;  I  think  I  have  now  said 
enough ;  but  what  I  told  you  before,  namely,  that 
there  is  deep  and  wide-spread  enmity  against  me. 


_ 


And  this 


that,  you  must  remember,  is  perfectjy_ixne. 
is  what  will  overthrow  me.  if  I  am  overthrown,  not 


C. 


Meletus  nor  yet  Anytus,  but  the  prejudices  and  envy ' 

the  majority,  forces  that  have  overthrown  manyTgood  /  /  /ψμΛ*] 

man  ere  now,  and  will,  I  imagine,  overthrow  many  more  r 


there  is  little  fear  that  it  will  end  with  me.  But  maybe  2  8  IT 


86 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


ονκ  αισχννει,  ω  'Χωκρατες,  τοι οντον  επιτήδευμα  επιτηδενσας, 
e£  ου  κινδυνεύεις  νυνι  άποθανε Γν ;  εγώ  δε  τοντω  αν  δίκαιον 
λόγον  άντείποιμι,  ότι  ον  καλώς  λεγεις,  ώ  άνθρωπε,  εΐ  ok 
δεΐν  κίνδυνον  νπολογίζεσθαι  του  ζην  η  τεθνάναι  άνδρα  ότον 
τι  και  σμικρον  οφελος  εστιν,  αλλ ’  ονκ  εκείνο  μόνον  σκοπεϊν, 
όταν  πράττη,  πότερον  δίκαια  η  άδικα  πράττει ,  και  άνδοος 
άγαμου  έργα  r)  κακού.  φαύλοι  γάρ  αν  τω  γε  σω  λδγω  εΐεν 
28  Οτων  ημίθεων  όσοι  εν  Τροία  τετελεντηκασιν  οι  τε  άλλοι  και 
ό  της  Θετιδος  νιος ,  δς  τοσοντον  του  κίνδυνον  κατεφρόνησεν 
παρα  το  αισχρόν  τι  νπομε ΐναι,  ώστε  επειδή  εΐπεν  η  μητηρ 

αυτω  προθνμονμενω  'Έκτορα  άποκτεΐναι,  θεός  ονσα,  οντωσί 
πο)ς,  ως  εγω  οίιμασ  ω  παΐ,  ει  τιμωρήσεις  Πατρδκλω  τω 
εταιρω  τον  φονον  και  Έκτορα  άποκτενεΐς,  αΰτδς  α7το$ανα' 
αντικα  γαρ  τοι,  φησι,  μεθ’  Έκτορα  πότμος  έτοιμος'  ό  δί 
ταντα  ακονσας  τον  μεν  θανάτου  καί  του  κίνδυνον  ωλιγωρησε 
28  D  πολύ  δε  μάλλον  δεισας  το  ζην  κακός  ων  καί  τοις  φίλοις  μη 


lit 

& 

4 

Γ 

: 

' 


τιμωρείν,  αντικα,  φησι,  τεθναιην  δίκην  επιθεις  τώ  άδικονντι, 
ινα  μη  ενθάδε  μένω  καταγέλαστος  παρα.  νηνσΐ  κορωνίσιν 
άχθος  αρονρης.  μη  αντον  οιει  φροντίσαι  θανάτου  και 
κίνδυνον  ;  ουτω  γαρ  εχει,  ω  άνδρες  ’  Αθηναίοι,  τη  αλήθεια ' 
ου  αν  τις  εαυτόν  τάξη  ηγησάμενος  βελτιστον  είναι  η  ντ 
αρχοντος  ταχθη,  ενταύθα  δει,  ως  εμοίι  δοκει,  μενον τα 
κινδυνεΰειν,  μηδέν  νπολογιζόμενον  μήτε  θάνατον  μψ(· 
άλλο  μηδέν  προ  τον  αισχρόν. 

XVII.  Έγ  ω  ουν  δείνα  άν  είην  ειργασ μένος,  ω  ανδρί? 

23  Έ  Αθηναίοι,  ει,  ο  τε  μεν  με  οι  άρχοντες  εταττον,  ονς  ίμεΐϊ 


THE  APOLOGY 


some  of  you  will  say  to  me  :  “And  are  you  not  ashamed 
of  a  practice  that  has  brought  you  to  the  verge  of  death? 

But  I  have  a  good  answer  to  give  him.  “  You  are  not 
right,  my  friend,’ ’  so  I  would  say,  <£  if  you  think  that  a 
man  of  any  worth  at  all,  however  slight,  ought  to  reckon 
r  up  the  chances  of  life  and  death,  and  not  consider  one  thing 
i  and  one  alone,  and  that  is  whether  what  he  does  is  right  or 
wrong,  a  good  man’s  deed  or  a  craven’s.”  According  to  28  C 
you,  the  sons  of  the  Gods  who  died  at  Troy  would  have  been 
foolish  creatures,  and  the  son  of  1  hetis  above  all,  who 
'  thought  so  lightly  of  danger  compared  with  the  least 
disgrace,  that,  when  he  was  resolved  to  kill  Hectoi  and 
when  his  mother,  Goddess  as  she  was,  spoke  to  him,  to  this 
effect,  if  I  remember  right :  “  My  son,  if  you  avenge  the 

slaughter  of  your  friend  Patroclus,  and  kill  Elector,  you  will 
die  yourself : — 

‘After  the  fall  of  Hector,  death  is  waiting  for  you;’”— 


those  were  her  words.  But  he,  when  he  heard,  thought 
scorn  of  death  and  danger :  he  was  far  more  afraid  to  live 
a  coward’s  life  and  leave  his  friend  unavenged.  “Come  28  13 
death  then  l·”  he  answered,  “  when  I  have  punished  the 
murderer,  that  I  may  not  live  on  here  in  shame, — 

‘  Here  by  my  longships  lying,  a  burden  for  earth  to  bear  !  ’  ” 

Do  you  think  that  that  man  cared  for  death  or  danger  ? 

Hear  the  truth,  men  of  Athens  !  The  post  that  a  man  has 
taken  up  because  he  thought  it  right  himself  or _  because. his 
captain  put  Tim  there,  that  post,  I  believe^  he_pught 
to  hold  in  face  oTevery  danger,  caring  no  whit  for  death 
or  any  other  peril  in  comparison  with  disgrace. 

XVII.  So  it  would  be  a  strange  part  for  me  to  have  28  E 
played,  men  of  Athens,  if  I  had  done  as  I  did  under 
the  leaders  you  chose  for  me,  at  Potidaea  and  Amphipolis 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 

είλεσθε  άρχέιν  μου,  καί  εν  Ποτειδαία  και  εν  Άμφιπόλει 
καί  £7τι  Αηλίω,  τότε  /χέν  ου  εκείνοι  εταττον  ε/χενον  ώσ7 τερ 
και  άλλος  τις  καί  εκινδΰνευον  άπο^ανείν,  του  δε  #εοΰ 
ταττοντος,  ώς  εγώ  ωηθην  τε  και  υπελαβον,  φιλοσοφοΰντά 
με  δεΐν  και  ε£ετά£οντα  ε/χαυτδν  και  τους  άλλους,  ενταύθα 
29  Α  δε  φοβηθείς  η  θάνατον  η  άλλο  |  ότιοΰν  πράγμα  λίποιμι 
τήν  ταξιν.  όεινον  ταν  ειη,  και  ως  αληυως  τοτ  αν^  /χε 
δικαίως  είσάγοι  τις  εις  δικαστηρίου,  δτι  ου  νομίζω  θεούς 
είναι  απειθών  τη  μαντεία  καί  δεδιώς  θάνατον  καί  οιόμενος 
σοφός  είναι  οΰκ  ών.  τδ  γαρ  τοι  θάνατον  δεδιεναι,  ώ 
ανόρες,  ουοεν  αΑΛο  εστιν  ή  οοκειν  σοφον  είναι  μη  οντα· 
οοκειν  γαρ  ειοεναι  εστιν  α  ονκ  οιοεν.  οιόε  μεν  γαρ  ονόεις 
τον  θάνατον  ουδ’  εί  τυγχάνει  τω  άνθρωπω  πάντων  με- 
γιστον  ον  των  αγασων,  όεόιασι  ο  ως  ευ  ειόοτες  οτι 
29  Β  μεγ  ιστόν  των  κακών  εστί.  καί  τούτο  πως  ονκ  άμαθία 
εστιν  αυτή  η  επονείδιστος,  η  τον  οίεσθαι  είδεναι  ά  οΰκ 
οιοεν  ;  εγω  ό  ,  ω  ανόρες,  τουτω  και  ενταυσα  ίσως  όια φέρω 
των  πολλών  ά νθρωπων,  καί  εί  δη  τω  σοφωτερός  τον 
φαίην  είναι,  τουτω  αν,  δτι  οΰκ  είδώς  ίκανως  περί  των  εν 
Αιοου  ουτω  και  οιομαι  ονκ  ειοεναι*  το  όε  αοικειν  και 
άπειθεΐν  τω  βελτίονι ,  καί  #εω  καί  άν^ρώττω,  δτι  κακόν  καί 
αισχρόν  εστιν  οιδα.  7τρδ  οΰν  των  κακών,  ών  οιδα  δτι  κακα 
εστιν,  ά  /xr/  οιδα  εί  αγα#α  οντα  τυγχάνει,  ουδέποτε  φοβή- 
σομαι  ουδέ  φευζομ αι*  ώστε  οΰδ’  εί  ρ,ε  νυν  ΰ/χεϊς  άφίετε 

m  *  Λ  '  »  /  «λ  V  I  3\  Ν  3  3  3  «3  Λ  3  \ 

29  ^  Ανυτω  απιστησαντες,  ος  εφη  η  την  αρχήν  ου  οειν  ερ,ε 
οευρο  εισελίζειν  ή,  επειδή  εισηλ,ϋον,  ουχ  οιον  τ  είναι  το  μή 
άποκτεΐναί  με,  λεγων  προς  υμάς  ως,  εί  δια φευζοίμην,  ηδη 
αν  ΰρ,ών  οί  υίείς  επιτηδευοντες  ά  Σωκράτης  διδάσκει  πάντες 


THE  APOLOGY 


/  and  Delium,  standing  my  ground  like  any  one  else 
where  they  had  posted  me  and  facing  death,  and  yet, 
when  God,  as  I  thought  and  believed,  had  set  me  to 

1 1 

live  the  life  of  philosophy,  making  inquiry  into  myself 
and  into  others,  I  were  to  fear  death  now,  or  any¬ 
thing  else  whatever,  and  desert  my  post.  It  would  be29-^ 

11  very  strange  ;  and  then,  in  truth,  one  would  have  reason^ 
to  bring  me  before  the  court,  because  I  did  not  believe  I  L·  λ, 
in  the  Gods,  since  I  disobeyed  the  oracle  and  was/J^^Aj 
afraid  of  death,  and  thought  I  was  wise  where  I  was 
not.  For  to  fear  death,  sirs,  is  simply  to  think  we  are  * 

wise  when  we  are  not  so  :  it  is  to  think  we  know  what  we 
know  not.  No  one  knows  whether  death  is  not  the 
greatest  of  all  goods  that  can  come  to  man ;  and  yet  men 
fear  it  as  though  they  knew  it  was  the  greatest  of  all  ills.  29  B 
And  is  not  this  the  folly  that  should  be  blamed,  the  folly 
of  thinking  we  know  what  we  do  not  know  ?  Here,  again, 
sirs,  it  may  be  that  I  am  different  from  other  men,  and  if 
I  could  call  myself  wiser  than  any  one  in  any  point,  it 
would  be  for  this,  that  as  I  have  no  real  knowledge  about 
the  world  of  Death,  so  I  never  fancy  that  I  have.  But 
I  dS" know  that  it  Is  evil  and  base  to  do  wrong  and  disobey 
the  higher  will,  be  it  God’s  or  man’s.  And  so  for  the  sake 
of  evils,  which  I  know  ri^ht  well  are  evils,  I  will  never 
fear  and  never  fly  from  things  which  are,  it  may  be,  good. 

Therefore,  though  you  should  acquit  me  now  and  refuse  29  C 
to  listen  to  Anytus  when  he  says  that  either  I  ought  never 
to  have  been  brought  here  at  all,  or  else,  now  that  I  have 
been,  it  is  impossible  not  to  sentence  me  to  death,  assuring 
you  that  if  I  am  set  at  liberty,  your  sons  will  at  once  put 
into  practice  all  that  I  have  taught  them,  and  all  become 


OU 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


' τταντά,πασι  διαφθαρήσονται, — ει  μοι  προς  ταντα  εΐποιτε'  ώ 
ZS ωκρατες ,  νυν  μεν  Άνυτω  ον  πεισόμεθα,  αλλ’  άφίεμεν  σε, 
C7rt  τουτω  μεντοι,  εφ’  ωτε  μηκετι  iv  ταντη  τή  ζητήσει  δια- 
29  D  τρίβειν  μηδε  φιλοσοφεΐν  εάν  δε  άλως  ετι  τούτο  πράττων , 
αποκάνει*  εΐ  ονν  με,  δπερ  εΐπον,  επί  τοντοις  άφίοιτε,  είποιμ 
αν  νμΐν  οτι  εγώ  υμάς,  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  άσπάζομαι  μεν  και 
φιλώ,  πείσομαι  δε  μάλλον  τω  #εω  τ)  υρ-Γν,  και  εωσπερ  αν 
εμπνεω  και  οίό?  τε  ώ,  ου  ρ,ή  πανσωμαι  φιλοσόφων  και 
νμΐν  παρακελενόμενός  τε  και  ενδει κννμενος  δτω  αν  αεί 
εντυγχάνω  νμων,  λεγων  οια περ  εΐωθα,  οτι  ώ  άριστε  άνδρών, 

’ Αθηναίος  ών,  πόλεως  τ^ς  μεγίστης  καί  ενδοκιμωτάτης  είς 
σοφίαν  καί  ίσχνν,  -χρημάτων  μεν  ονκ  αισχννει  επιμελον- 

29  Ε  μένος,  δπως  σοι  εσται  ως  πλεΐστα,  καί  δόζης  καί  τιμής, 

φρονήσεως  δε  καί  αλήθειας  καί  τής  ψνχτ)ς,  δπως  ως  βέλ¬ 
τιστη  εσται,  ονκ  επιμελεΐ  ουδέ  φροντίζεις;  καί  εάν  τι? 
νμων  άμφισβητή  καί  φή  επιμελεΐσθαι,  ονκ  ενθνς  άφήσω 
αυτόν  ονδ ’  άπειμι,  αλλ’  ερήσομαι  αυτόν  καί  εζετάσω  καί 
ελεγζω,  καί  εάν  μοι  μή  δοκή  κεκτήσθ αι  αρετήν,  φάναι  δε, 

30  Α  ονειδιώ  οτι  τα  πλείστον  άξια  περί  |  ελάχιστου  ποιείται,  τα 

δε  φαυλότερα  περί  πλείονος.  ταντα  καί  νεωτερω  καί  πρεσ- 
βντερω,  οτω  αν  εντνγχάνω,  ποιήσω ,  καί  £ενω  καί  αστω, 
μάλλον  δε  τοΐς  αστοί?,  όσω  μον  εγγντερω  εστέ  γενει.  ταντα 
yap  κελεύει  ό  θεός,  εν  ιστέ,  και  εγώ  οιρ,αι  ονδεν  πω  νμΐν  μεΐζον 
αγαθόν  γενεσθαι  εν  τη  πόλει  ή  την  εμήν  τω  θεω  νπηρεσίαν . 
ονδεν  γάρ  άλλο  πράττων  εγώ  περιέρχομαι  ή  πείθων  νμων 
καί  νεωτερονς  καί  πρεσβντερονς  μήτε  σωμάτων  επιμελεΐσθαι 
30  Β  μήτε  χρημάτων  πρότερον  μηδε  οντω  σφοδρά  ως  τής  ψνχής, 
δπως  ως  άρίστη  εσται,  λεγων  ονκ  εκ  χρημάτων  αρετή 


THE  APOLOGY 


9i 


entirely  corrupt — if,  in  face  of  this,  you  should  say  to  me, 

“  Socrates,  for  this  once  we  will  not  listen  to  Anytus ;  we 
will  set  you  free,  but  on  this  condition,  that  you  spend 
your  time  no  longer  in  this  search,  and  follow  wisdom  no 
more.  If  you  are  found  doing  it  again  you  will  be  put  to  29  D 
death.,,  If,  I  repeat,  you  were  to  set  me  free  on  that 
condition,  I  would  answer  you :  Men  of  Athens,  I  thank 
you  and  I  am  grateful  to  you,  but  I  must  obey  God  rather 
than  you,  and,  while  I  have  life  and  strength,  I  will  never 
rpasp  tofollow  wisdom,  and  urge  you  forward,  explaining  to 


every  man  of  youl  meet,  speaking  as  I  have  always  spoken» 


4#· 


.Ye#'* 

I 


saying,  <4  See  here,  my  friend,  you  are  an  Athenian,  a 
citizen  of  the  greatest  city  in  the  world,  the  most  famous 
for  wisdom  and  for  power ;  and  are  you  not  ashamed  to 
care  for  money  and  money-making  and  fame  and  repu-  2  9  ^ 
tation,  and  not  care  at  all,  not  make  one  effort,  for  truth 
and  understanding  and  the  welfare  of  your  soul  ? 5  And 
should  he  protest,  and  assert  he  cares,  I  will  not  let  him 
go  at  once  and  send  him  away  free :  no  !  I  will  question  him 
and  examine  him,  and  put  him  to  the  proof,  and  if  it  seems 
to  me  that  he  has  not  attained  to  virtue,  and  yet  asserts  he 
has,  I  will  reproach  him  for  holding  cheapest  what  is  3® 
worth  most,  and  dearer  what  is  worth  less.  This  I  will 
do  for  old  and  young, — for  every  man  I  meet,  foreigner 
and  citizen, — but  most  for  my  citizens,  since  you  are  nearer 
to  me  by  blood.  It  is  God’s  bidding,  you  must  undei- 
stand  that ;  andT  I  myself  believe  no  greater  blessing  has 
ever  come  to  you  or  to  your  city  than  this  service  of  mine 
to  God.  I  havejrone  about  doing  one  thing  and  one  thing--·. 
only, — exhortmgall  of  you?  young  and  old,  not  to  care  for  3  p  ^ 
your  bodies  or  for  money  above  or  beyond  your  souls  and 
their^wellare,  telling  you  that  virtue  does  not 


92 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


γιγνεται,  άλλ’  έ£  αρετής  χρήματα  και  τα  άλλα  άγαθα  τοΐς 
άνθρωποί  άπαντα  και  ιδία  και  δημοσία,  ει  μεν  ονν  ταντα 
λίγων  διαφθείρω  τους  νέους,  ταΰτ ’  άν  είη  βλαβερά ·  ει  δε 
τις  μ,έ  φησιν  άλλα  λεγειν  ή  ταντα,  ονδεν  λέγει.  προς 
ταντα ,  φαίην  άν,  ώ  ’Αθηναίοι.,  ή  πείθεσθε  Άνΰτω  ή  μη, 
και  τ)  άφίετε  ή  μη  άφίετε,  ως  εμον  ονκ  αν  ποιήσοντος 
3  Ο  C  αλλα,  οΰδ’  ει  μέλλω  πολλάκις  τεθνάν αι. 

XVIII.  Mr/  θορνβείτε,  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  άλλ’  εμμείνατε 
μοι  οις  εδεήθην  νμων,  μη  θορνβείν  εφί  οις  άν  λέγω,  άλλ’ 
άκοΰειν  και  γάρ,  ώς  εγώ  οίμαι,  δνήσεσθε  άκοΰοντες. 
μέλλω  γαρ  ονν  αττα  υρ,ιν  ερειν  και  αλλα,  εφ  οις  ίσως 
βοήσεσθε *  άλλα  μηδαμώς  ποιείτε  τούτο,  ευ  γάρ  Γστε, 
εάν  έρ.έ  άποκτείνητε  τοιοΰτον  οντα,  οιον  εγώ  λέγω,  ονκ 
ερ,ε  μειζω  βλάψετε  η  νμας  αυτους*  ερ,ε  ρ,εν  γαρ  ουόεν  αν 
βλάφειεν  ούτε  Μέλτ/τος  ούτε  νΑνυτος·  ουδέ  γάρ  άν  δυναιτο* 
3θϋοΰ  γάρ  οίμαι  θεμιτόν  είναι  άμείνονι  άνδρι  ΰπο  χείρον ος 
βλάπτεσθ αι.  άποκτείνειε  μένταν  ίσως  ή  έζελάσειεν  ή 
άτιμώσειεν ·  άλλά  ταυτα  ουτος  ρ,εν  ίσως  οιεται  και  άλλος 
τις  7Γου  μεγάλα  κακά,  εγώ  δ’  οΰκ  οΐομαι,  άλλά  πολΰ  μάλλον 
ποιείν  ά  ουτος  νυνί  ποιεί ,  άνδρα  άδικως  επιχει ρείν  άποκτει- 
νυναι.  νυν  ουν,  ώ  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  πολλοΰ  δέω  εγώ  υπέρ 
εμαντον  άπολογείσθαι,  ώς  τις  άν  οίοιτο,  άλλά  υπέρ  νμων, 
μη  τι  εζα μάρτητε  περί  την  τον  θεόν  δόσιν  νμίν  εμον  κατα- 
3  Ο  Ε  φηφισάμενοι.  εάν  γάρ  εμε  άποκτείνητε,  ον  ραδίως  άλλον 
τοιοΰτον  ενρήσετε,  άτεχνώς,  ει  και  γελοιότερον  ειπείν,  προσ¬ 
κείμενον  τη  πολει  ΰπο  του  #εοΰ,  ώσπερ  ίππω  μεγάλω 


THE  APOLOGY  93 

wealth,  but  wealth  from  virtue,  even  as  all  other  goods,  public 
or  private,  that  man  can  need.  If  it  is  by  these  words 
that  I  corrupt  our  youth,  then  these  words  do  harm ;  but 
if  any  one  asserts  that  I  say  anything  else,  there  is  nothing 
in  what  he  says.  In  face  of  this  I  would  say,  “  Men  of 
Athens,  listen  to  Anytus  or  not,  acquit  me  or  acquit  me 
not,  but  remember  that  I  will  do  nothing  else,  not  if  I 
were  to  die  a  hundred  deaths. ”  30  C 

XVIII.  No !  do  not  interrupt  me,  Athenians  ;  keep 
the  promise  I  asked  you  to  give, — not  to  interrupt  what 
I  had  to  say,  but  to  hear  it  to  the  end.  I  believe  it  will 
do  you  good.  I  am  about  to  say  something  else  for 
which  you  might  shout  me  down,  only  I  beg  you  not  to 
do  so.  You  must  understand  that  if  you  put  me  to  death 
when  I  am  the  kind  of  man  I  say  I  am,  you  will  not  injure 
me  so  much  as  your  own  selves.  Meletus  or  Anytusr 
could  not  injure  me  ;  they  have  not  the  power.  I  do  not 
believe  it  is  permitted  that  a  good  man  should  be  injured  30  D 
by  a  bad.  He  could  be  put  to  death,  perhaps,  or  exiled, 
or  disfranchised,  and  it  may  be  Meletus  thinks,  and  others 
think,  that  these  are  terrible  evils,  but  I  do  not  believe 
they  are.  I  think  it  far  worse  to  do  what  he  is  doing 
now, — trying  to  put  a  man  to  death  without  a  cause.  So  ~ 
it  comes  about,  men  of  Athens,  that  I  am  far  from 
making  my  defence  for  my  own  sake,  as  might  be  thought : 

I  make  it  for  yours,  that  you  may  not  lose  God’s  gift  by 
condemning  me.  .For  if  you  put  me  to  death  you  will  3°  E 
not  easily  find  another  of  my  like  ;  one,  I  might  say, — even 
if  it  sounds  a  little  absurd, — who  clings  to  the  city  at 
God’s  command,  as  a  gadfly  clings  to  a  horse  ;  and  the 


94 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


μχν  καί  γε νναίω,  υπό  μεγέθους  δε  νωθεστέρω  και  δεομένω 
εγείρεσθαι  νπο  μυωπός  τίνος·  οιον  δη  μοι  δοκεΐ  δ  θεδς  εμέ 
τη  πόλει  προστεθεικέναι  τοιουτόν  τινα,  os  υμάς  εγείρων  και 
3 1  Α  πείθων  και  δνειδίζων  ενα  έκαστον ,  ονδέν  παύομαι  |  την 
ημέραν  δλην  πανταχου  προσκαθίζων.  τοιουτος  ουν  άλλος 
ον  ραόιως  νμιν  γενησεται ,  ω  ανορες,  αΛΑ  εαν  εμοι  πεισησυε , 
φείσεσθέ  μον  υμείς  δ ’  ίσως  ταχ’  αν  άχθόμενοι ,  ώσπερ  οι 
νυστάζοντες  εγειρόμενοι ,  κρουσαντες  αν  με,  πειθόμενοι 
’ Ανυτω ,  ραδίως  αν  άποκτείναιτε,  ειτα  τον  λοιπόν  βίον  καθεν- 
δοντες  δια τελοΐτε  αν,  εΐ  μη  τινα  άλλον  δ  θεός  νμιν  έπι- 
πέμφειεν  κηδόμενος  υμών.  οτι  δ’  εγώ  τυγχάνω  ων  τοιοντος, 
οιος  Ό7το  τον  σεον  τη  πολει  οεοοσσαι,  ενοενοε  αν  κατα- 
3  I  Β  νοησαιτε ·  ου  γαρ  άνθρω πίνω  έοικε  τδ  ερ,έ  των  μεν  έμαντον 
απάντων  ημεληκέναι  και  άνέχεσθαι  των  οικείων  άμελονμένων 
τοσαντα  η  δη  έτη,  τό  δε  νμέτερον  πράττειν  αεί,  ιδία  εκαστω 
προσιόντα  ώσπερ  πατέρα  η  αδελφόν  πρεσβντερον,  πείθοντα 
έπιμελεΐσθαι  αρετής,  καί  τοι  εΐ  μέν  τι  από  τούτων  άπέ- 
λανον  και  μισθόν  λαμβάνων  ταντα  παρεκελενόμην,  ειχον 
άν  τινα  λόγον·  νυν  δε  δράτε  δη  και  αυτοί,  ότι  οι  κατήγοροι 
τάλλα  πάντα  άναισχόντως  οντω  κατηγορονντες  τοντό  γε 
3  I  C  ουχ  οιοι  τε  έγένοντο  άπανα ισχυντησαι  παρασχόμενοι  μάρ¬ 
τυρα,  ως  εγώ  ποτέ  τινα  η  έπραξάμην  μισθόν  η  ητησα. 
ικανόν  γάρ,  οιμαι,  εγώ  παρέχομαι  τον  μάρτυρα,  ως  άληθη 
λέγω,  την  πενίαν. 

VTV  ντ  t  Ο  />  V  ? 

ΑΙΑ.  Ισως  αν  ονν  όοξαεν  ατοπον  eivac,  οτι  όη  £γω 
ιδία  μέν  ταντα  ξυμβουλευω  περιιων  και  πολυπραγμονώ, 
δημοσία  δε  ου  τολμώ  άναβαίνων  εις  τό  πλήθος  τό  υμέτερον 
ξυμβουλευειν  τη  πόλει.  τουτου  δε  αίτιόν  εστιν  δ  υμείς 
3  ι  D  έμου  πολλάκις  άκηκόατε  πολλαχου  λέγοντος,  ότι  μοι  θειον 


THE  APOLOGY  95 

c  Ko  oo^  ^  y 

-horse  is  tall  and  thoroughbred,  but  lazy  from  his  growth, 

I'and  he  needs  to  be  stirred  up.  And  God,  I  think,  has  set 
1  me  here  as  something  of  the  kind, — to  stir  you  up  and  urge 
i  you,  and  prick  each  one  of  you  and  never  cease,  sitting  3 1  A 
,  close  to  you  all  day  long.  You  will  not  easily  find 
I  another  man  like  that ;  and,  sirs,  if  you  listen  to  me  you 
j  will  not  take  my  life.  But  probably  you  have  been 
annoyed,  as  drowsy  sleepers  are  when  suddenly  awakened, 
and  you  will  turn  on  me  and  listen  to  Anytus,  and  be  glad 
to  put  me  to  death  ;  and  then  you  will  spend  the  rest  of 
your  life  in  sleep,  unless  God,  in  his  goodness,  sends 
you  another  man  like  me.  j  That  I  am  what  I  say  I  am, 
given  by  God  to  the  city,  you  may  realise  from  this:  it  1331  B 
not  the  way  of  a  mere  man  to  leave  all  his  own  affairs 
uncared  for  and  all  his  property  neglected  during  so  many 
years,  and  go  about  your  business  all  his  life,  coming  to  each 
individual  man,  as  I  have  come,  as  though  I  were  his 
father  or  Tis  elder  brother,  and  bidding  him  think  of 
righteousness.  If  I  had  got  any  profit  by  this,  if  I  had 
faTcrtl  payment  for  these  words,  there  would  have  been 
some  explanation  for  what  I  did  ;  but  you  can  see  for  your¬ 
selves  that'my  accusers — audacious  in  everything  else — have 
yet  not  had  the  audacity  to  bring  witnesses  to  assert  that  I  3 1  C 
have  evgr  taken  payment  from  any  man,  or  ever  asked  for 
it.  *The  Witness  I  could  bring  myself  in  my  own  poverty, 
would  be  enough,  I  think,  to  prove  I  speak  the  truth. 

XIX.  It  may  perhaps  seem  strange  that  while  I  have 
gone  about  in  private  to  give  this  counsel,  and  have  been 
so  busy  over  it,  yet  I  have  not  found  it  in  my  heart  to 
come  forward  publicly  before  your  democracy  and  advise 
the  State.  The  reason  is  one  you  have  heard  me  give 
before,  at  many  times  and  in  many  places  ;  and  it  is  this  :  3 1  D 


96 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


τι  και  δαιμόνων  γίγνεται  [φωνή^\  ο  δη  και  εν  τη  γραφή 
έπ ικωμωδων  Μ έλητος  έγράψατο·  εμοί  δέ  τον τ  εστιν  εκ 
παιδος  άρξάμενον,  φωνή  τις  γιγ νομένη,  η  όταν  γένηται,  αεί 
άποτρέ πει  με  τούτο  δ  αν  μέλλω  πράττειν,  προτρέπει  δε 
ουποτε·  τοντ  εστιν  δ  μοι  έναντιονται  τα  πολίτικα  πράττε ιν. 
και  παγκάλως  γέ  μοι  δοκέ ΐ  έναντιουσθαΐ'  εν  γάρ  ιστέ,  ω 
άνδρες  Αθηναίοι ,  εΐ  εγω  πάλαι  έπεχείρησα  πράττειν  τα 
πολιτικά  πράγματα,  πάλαι  αν  άπολώλη  και  ουτ  αν  νμάς 
3 1  Ε  ώφεληκη  ούδέν  ουτ  αν  έμαντόν.  καί  μοι  μη  άχθεσθε 
λέγοντι  τάληθη’  ον  γάρ  εστιν  οστις  ανθρώπων  σωθησεται 
ούτε  νμΐν  ούτε  άλλω  πληθει  ούδενί  γνησίως  ενάντιον μεν ος 
και  δια κωλνων  πολλά  άδικα  καί  παράνομα  εν  τη  πόλει 
3  2  Α  γίγνεσθαι,  |  αλλ’  άναγκαίόν  εστι  τον  τω  όντι  μα χουμενον 
υπέρ  του.  δικαίου,  και  ει  μέλλει  ολίγον  χρόνον  σωθησεσθαι, 
ίδιωτενειν  αλλά  μη  δημοσιευειν. 

XX.  Μεγάλα  δ’  εγωγε  υμίν  τεκμήρια  παρέχομαι  τούτων, 
ου  λογους,  άλλ’  δ  υμείς  τιμάτε,  έργα,  ακούσατε  δη  μου 
τα  εμοι  ξν μ  μέρη  κότα,  ινα  ειόητε  οτι  ουο  αν  ενι  υπεικασοιμι 
παρά  το  δίκαιον  δείσας  θάνατον,  μη  υπείκων  δε  άμα  και 
άμα  αν  άπολοίμην.  έρω  δε  υμΊν  φορτικά  μεν  καί  δικά  νικά, 
3  2  Β  άληθη  δέ.  εγω  γάρ,  ω  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  άλλην  μεν  άρχην  ουδέ 
μίαν  πωποτε  ηρξ α  εν  τη  πόλει,  έβουλευσα  δέ *  καί  ετνχεν 
ημών  η  φυλή  Άντίοχις  πρυτανευουσα,  οτε  υμείς  τους  δέκα 
στρατηγούς  τους  ουκ  άνελομένους  τους  εκ  της  ναυμαχίας 
έβουλεσθε  άθρόους  κρίνειν,  παρανόμως,  ως  εν  τω  υστέρω 
χρόνιο  πάσιν  υμΐν  έδοξε.  τότ  εγω  μόνος  των  πρύτανεων 
ηναντιωθην  μηδέν  ποιεΐν  παρά  τους  νόμους  καί  εναντία 


THE  APOLOGY 

aI  have  a  divine  and  supernatural  sign  that  comes  t(r 
Meletus  referred  to  it  scofhngly  in  his  indictment 
but,  in  truth,  it  has  been  with  me  from  boyhood,  a  kind 
of  voice  that  comes  to  me  ;  and,  when  it  comes,  it  always 
holds  me  back  from  what  I  may  intend  to  do  ;  it  never 
urges  me  forward.  It  is  this  which  has  stopped  me  from 
taking  part  in  public  affairs ;  and  it  did  well,  I  think,  to 
stop  me.  F  or  you  may  be  sure,  men  of  Athens,  if  I  had 
attempted  to  enter  public  life,  I  should  have  perished  long 
ago,  without  any  good  to  you  or  to  myself.  Do  not  be  3 1  E 
angry  with  me  if  I  tell  you  the  truth.  No  man  will  ever 
be  safe  who  stands  up  boldly  against  you,  or  against  any 
other  democracy,  and  forbids  the  many  sins  and  crimes 
that  are  commitfeffiliTthe  State  ;  the  man  who  is  to  fight  32  A 
for  justice — if  he  is  to  keep  his  life  at  all — must  work  in 
private,  not  in  public.  <  ? 

XX.  I  will  give  you  a  remarkable  proof  of  this,  a  proof 
not  in  words,  but  in  what  you  value — deeds.  Listen,  and 
I  will  tell  you  something  that  happened  to  me,  and  you 
may  realise  from  it  that  I  will  never  consent  to  injustice 
at  any  man’s  command  for  fear  of  death,  but  would  die 
on  the  spot  rather  than  give  way.  What  I  have  to  tell 
you  may  seem  an  arrogant  tale  and  a  commonplace  of  the 
courts,  but  it  is  true. 

You  know,  men  of  Athens,  that  I  have  never  held  any  3 2  B 
other  office  in  the  State,  but  I  did  serve  on  the  Council. 

And  it  happened  that  my  tribe,  Antiochis,  had  the  Presi¬ 
dency  at  the  time  you  decided  to  try  the  ten  generals  who 
had  not  taken  up  the  dead  after  the  fight  at  sea.*  You 
decided  to  try  them  in  one  body,  contrary  to  law,  as  you  all 
felt  afterwards.  On  that  occasion  I  was  the  only  one  of  the 
Presidents  who  opposed  you,  and  told  you  not  to  break 

*  See  Note  6. 


H 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 

ισάμην,  και  ετοίμων  οντων  ενδεικννναι  με  καί  άπάγειν 
των  ρητόρων,  και  υμών  κελευόντων  καί  βοώντων,  μετά  τον 
C  νόμου  καί,  τον  δικαίου  ωμήν  μάλλον  με  δεΐν  διακινδννευειν 
η  μεθ'  υμών  γενεσθαι  μη  δίκαια  βουλευομενων,  φοβηθεντα 
δεσμόν  η  θάνατον,  και  ταυτα  μεν  ην  ετι  δημοκρατουμενης 
της  πόλεως *  επειδή  δε  ολιγαρχία  εγενετο,  οι  τριάκοντα  αν 
μεταπεμφάμενοί  με  πεμπτον  αυτόν  εις  την  θόλον  προσε- 
ταξαν  άγαγείν  εκ  ^αλαμΐνος  Αεοντα  τον  %αλαμίνιον,  ΐνα 
άποθάνοί'  οια  δη  και  άλλοι?  εκείνοι  πολλοί?  πολλά  προσε- 

32D  ταττον,  βουλόμενοι  ως  πλεί στους  άναπλησαι  αίτιων ·  τότε 
μεντοι  εγω  ου  Λογω  αΛΑ  εργ«  αυ  ενεοειξαμην,  οτι  εμοι 
θανάτου  μεν  μελει,  ει  μη  άγροικότερον  ην  ειπείν,  ουδ * 
ότιουν,  του  δε  μηδέν  άδικον  μηδ'  άνόσιον  εργάζεσθαι,  τούτον 
οε  το  παν  μελει.  εμε  yap  εκείνη  η  αρχή  ουκ  εξεπληξεν 
ούτως  ισχυρά  ουσα,  ώστε  άδικόν  τι  εργάσ ασθαι,  άλλ’ 
επειδή  εκ  της  θόλον  εξηλθομεν,  οι  μεν  τετταρες  ωχοντο  εις 
Σαλαμίνα  και  ηγαγον  Αεοντα,  εγω  δε  ωχόμην  άπιων  οικαδε. 
και  ίσως  αν  διά  ταυτα  άπεθανον,  ει  μη  η  άρχη  διά  ταχέων 

32  Ε  κατελυθη’  καί  τούτων  νμΐν  εσονται  πολλοί  μάρτυρες. 

XXI.  ΤΑ ρ  ουν  αν  με  οίεσθε  τοσάδε  ετη  διαγενεσθαι,  εί 
επραττον  τα  δημόσια,  και  πράττων  άξίως  άνδρός  αγαθόν 
εβοηθονν  το ι?  δίκαιοι?  καί,  ώσπερ  χρη,  τούτο  περί  πλεί στον 
εποιουμην ;  πολλον  γε  δει,  ω  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι .  ουδέ  γάρ 

33  A  αν  άλλος  ανθρώπων  ουδείς.  |  αλλ’  εγώ  δια  παντός  τον  βίου 

δημοσία  τε,  ει  που  τι  επραζα,  τοιουτος  φανουμαι,  και  ιδία  δ 
αυτός  ουτος,  ουδενι  πωποτε  £υγχωρήσ ας^ουδεν  παρά  τό 


THE  APOLOGY 


99 


the  law ;  and  I  gave  my  vote  against  it  ;  and  when  the 
orators  were  ready  to  impeach  and  arrest  me,  and  you 
encouraged  them  and  hooted  me,  I  thought  then  that  I  32  C 
ought  to  take  all  risks  on  the  side  of  law  and  justice, 
rather  than  side  with  you,  when  your  decisions  were 
unjust,  through  fear  of  imprisonment  or  death.  That 
while  the  city  was  still  under  the  democracy.  When  the 
oligarchy  came  into  power,  the  Thirty,  in  their  turn, 
summoned  me  with  four  others  to  the  Rotunda,  and 
commanded  us  to  fetch  Leon  of  Salamis  from 
that  island,  in  order  to  put  him  to  death  :  the  sort  of 
commands  they  often  gave  to  many  others,  anxious  as 
they  were  to  incriminate  all  they  could.  And  on  that 32  D 
occasion  I  showed,  not  by  words  only,  that  for  death,  to 
put  it  bluntly,  I  did  not  care  one  straw, — but  I  did  care, 
and  to  the  full,  about  doing  what  was  wicked  and  unjust. 

I  was  not  terrified  then  into  doing  wrong  by  that  govern¬ 
ment  in  all  its  power  :  when  we  left  the  Rotunda,  the 
other  four  went  off  to  Salamis  and  brought  Leon  back, 
but  I  went  home.  And  probably  I  should  have  been  put 
to  death  for  it  if  the  government  had  not  been  overthrown 
soon  afterwards.  Many  people  will  confirm  me  in  what  I 
say.  32  E 

XXI.  Do  you  believe  now  that  I  should  have  lived  so 
.  long  as  this,  if  I  had  taken  part  in  public  affairs  and  done 
what  I  could  for  justice  like  an  upright  man,  putting  it, 
as  I  was  bound  to  put  it,  first  and  foremost?  Far  from 
it,  men  of  Athens.  Not  I,  nor  any  other  man  on  earth.  33  A 
And  all  through  my  life  you  will  find  that  this  has  been 
my  character, — in  public,  if  ever  I  had  any  public  work  to 
(  do,  and  the  same  in  private, — never  yielding  to  any  man 


100 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


δίκαιον  ο υτε  άλλω  ούτε  τούτων  ουδενί,  ους  οΐ  διαβάλλοντές 
εμέ  φασιν  εμους  μαθητό-ς  είναι.  εγώ  δε  διδάσκαλος  μεν 
ούδενός  πωποτ  έγενόμην’  εί  δε  τις  μου  λέγοντος  και  τα 
ε μαντού  7 τράττοντος  επιθυμεί  ακόυαν,  είτε  νεώτερος  είτε 
πρεσβυτερος,  ουδενί  πωποτέ  εφθόνησ α,  ουδέ  "χρήματα  μεν 
33  Β  λαμβάνων  διαλέγομαι,  μή  λαμβάνων  δε  ου,  άλλ’  ομοίως 
και  7 τλουσίω  και  πένητι  παρέχω'  εμαυτόν  έρωταν,  και  εάν 
τις  βουληται  άποκρινόμενος  ακόυαν  ων  αν  λέγω .  και 
τούτων  εγώ  είτε  τις  χρηστός  γίγνεται  είτε  μι;,  οΰκ  άν 
δικαίως  ττ/ν  αιτίαν  υπέχοιμι,  ων  μήτε  υπεσχόμην  μηδενί 
μηδέν  πωποτέ  μάθημα  μήτε  έδίδαξα·  εί  δε  τις  φησ ι  7ταρ* 
εμού  πωποτέ  τι  μαθεΐν  ή  άκοΰσαι  ίδια  ο  τι  μή  και  άλλοι 
7ταντες,  ευ  ιστέ  οτι  ουκ  αΛ,ηυη  Λεγει. 

XXII.  Άλλα  8ια  τι  δή  7τοτε  μετ’  εμού  χαίρουσί  τινες 
πολυν  χρόνον  διατρίβοντες  ;  άκηκόατε,  ω  άνδρες  Αθηναίοι' 
33  C  πάσαν  υμιν  ττ/ν  αλήθειαν  εγώ  εΐπον'  ότι  άκουοντες  χαι- 
ρουσιν  έξεταζομένοις  τοις  .  οιομένο ις  μεν  είναι  σοφοΐς,  ονσι 
ου*  εστι  γαρ  ουκ  αηόες.  εμοι  όε  τούτο,  ως  εγω  φημι, 
ΖΓροστέτακται  υπό  του  θεού  πράττειν  και  εκ  μαντείων  και 
έ£  ενυπνίων  και  παντι  τρόπω,  ωπερ  τις  7τοτε  και  άλλη  θεία 
ιχοΐρα  άνθρωπω  καί  ότιονν  προσέταζε  πράττειν.  ταΰτα, 
ω  Αθηναίοι,  καί  αληθή  εστίν  καί  ευέλεγκτα.  εί  γάρ  δή 
}  3  Γ)  «7ω7€  ν^ων  τους  μεν  διαφθείρω,  τούς  δε  δι έφθαρκα, 
χρήν  δτ;7Γου,  είτε  τινες  αυτών  πρεσβντεροι  γενόμενοι  έγνω- 
σαν  ότι  νέοις  ούσιν  αύτοις  εγώ  κακόν  πωποτέ  τι  ξυνεβου- 
λευσα,  νυνι  αυτούς  άναβα ίνοντας  εμού  κατηγορεΐν  καί 
τιμωρεΐσθαι'  εί  δε  μή  αυτοί  ήθελον,  των  οικείων  τινάς  των 
εκείνων,  πατέρας  καί  αδελφούς  καί  άλλους  τους  προσήκον¬ 
τος,  ειπερ  υπ ’  εμού  τι  κακόν  έπεπόνθεσαν  αυτών  οι  οικείοι, 
νύν  μεμνησθαι  καί  τιμωρεΐσθαι.  πάντως  δε  πάρεισιν  αυτών 


THE  APOLOGY 


ΙΟΙ 


against  right  and  justice,  though  he  were  one  of  those 
whom  my  calumniators  call  my  scholars.  But  I  have 
never  been  any  one’s  teacher.  Only,  if  any  man,  young 
or  old,  has  ever  heard  me  at  my  work  and  wished  to 
listen,  I  have  never  grudged  him  my  permission;  I  have  33  B 
not  talked  with  him  if  he  would  pay  me,  and  refused 
him  if  he  would  not ;  I  am  ready  for  questions  from 
rich  and  poor  alike,  and  equally  ready  to  question  them 
should  they  care  to  answer  me  and  hear  what  I  have  to 
say.  And  for  that,  if  any  one  is  the  better  or  any  one  the 
worse,  I  ought  not  to  be  held  responsible ;  I  never 
promised  instruction,  I  never  taught,  and  if  any  man  says 
he  has  ever  learnt  or  heard  one  word  from  me  in  private 
other  than  all  the  world  could  hear,  I  tell  you  he  does  not 
speak  the  truth. 

XXII.  What  then  can  it  be  that  makes  some  men 
delight  in  my  company?  You  have  heard  my  answer, 
sirs.  I  told  you  the  whole  truth  when  I  said  3  3  C 
their  delight  lay  in  hearing  men  examined  who  thought 
that  they  were  wise  but  were  not  so  ;  and  certainly  it  is 
not  unpleasant.  And  I,  as  I  believe,  have  been 
commanded  to  do  this  by  God,  speaking  in  oracles 
and  in  dreams,  in  every  way  by  which  divine  grace 
has  ever  spoken  to  man  at  all  and  told  him  what  to  do. 

That,  men  of  Athens,  is  the  truth,  and  easy  to  verify. 

For  if  it  were  really  the  case  that  I  corrupt  our  young  33  D 
men  and  have  corrupted  them,  then  surely,  now  that  they 
are  older,  if  they  have  come  to  understand  that  I  ever 
meant  to  do  them  harm  when  they  were  young,  some  of 
them  ought  to  come  forward  here  and  now,  to  accuse  and 
punish  me,  or  if  they  did  not  care  to  come  themselves, 
some  who  are  near  to  them — their  fathers,  or  their  brothers, 
or  others  of  their  kin, — ought  to  remember  and  punish 


102 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


πολλοί  εντανθοΐ,  ονς  εγώ  δρω ,  πρώτον  μεν  Κριτών  ουτοσί, 
έρδς  ηλικιωτης  και  δημότης,  Κριτοβουλου  τουδε  πατήρ ’ 

33  Ε  έπειτα  Λυσανιας  ο  %φηττιος,  Αισχίνον  τουδε  πατήρ'  ετι 

Άντιφων  6  Κ,ηφισιευς  ουτοσί,  ’Επιγένους  πατήρ ·  άλλοι 
τοίνυν  οΰτοι,  ων  οΐ  αδελφοί  εν  ταυτη  τη  διατριβή  γεγδνασιν, 
Νικδστρατος  Θεο£οτιδου,  αδελφός  Θεοδδτου — και  δ  ρ,έν 
Θεδδοτος  τετελεντηκεν,  ώστε  ουκ  αν  εκείνος  γε  αυτοί)  κατα- 
δεηθείη — ,  και  Πάραλος  δδε,  δ  Δημοδόκου,  ον  ην  ®εάγης 

34  Α  αδελφός'  δδε  δε  |  ’Αδείμα ντος,  δ  Άρίστωνος,  ου  αδελφός 

ουτοσί  Πλατών,  και  Αίαντόδωρος,  ον  ’Απολλόδωρος  δδε 
αδελφός,  καί  άλλους  πολλούς  εγώ  έχω  υρ-ΐν  ειπειν,  ών 
τινα  έχρην  μάλιστα  μεν  εν  τω  εαυτοί)  λδγω  παρασχεσθαι 
ΑΙελητον  μάρτυρα *  ει  δε  τότε  έπελά^ετο,  νυν  παρασχεσθω, 
εγώ  παραχωρώ,  και  λεγε'τω,  ει  τι  εχει  τοιουτον.  άλλα 
τουτου  παν  τουναντίον  ενρησετε,  ω  άνδρες,  πάντας  εμοί 
βοηθεΐν  ετοίμους  τω  διαφθείροντι,  τω  κακό,  εργαζομένω 

34  Βτους  οικείους  αυτών ,  ως  φασι  Με'λ^τος  και  Άνυτος.  αυτοί 
μεν  yap  οι  διεφθαρμένοι  τάχ  αν  λδγον  εχοιεν  βοηθουν τες* 
οί  δέ  άδιάφθαρτοι,  πρεσβυτεροι  ηδη  άνδρες,  οι  τούτων 
προσήκοντες,  τινα  άλλον  εχουσι  λόγον  βοηθουντες  εμοί 
άλλ’  τ;  τον  ορθόν  τε  καί  δίκαιον ,  δτι  ζυνίσασι  Μελετώ  ρ,έν 
φευδομενω,  εμοί  δε  άληθενοντι ; 

ΥΥΤΤΤ  ΧΓ'"*'  ςν  r  V  «χ\»\ν  J  Λ  1 

Α.Λ111.  Ειεν  ότρ  ω  ανορες*  α  μεν  εγω  εχοιρ  αν  απο- 

,  λογεΐσ#αι,  σχεδόν  έστι  ταΰτα  και  άλλα  ίσως  τοιαΰτα. 

34  Οτάχα  δ’  άν  τις  υρών  άγανακτησε ιεν  άναμνησθείς  εαυτόν,  εί 


THE  APOLOGY 


it  now,  if  it  be  true  that  those  who  are  dear  to  them  have 
suffered  any  harm  from  me.  In  fact,  there  are  many  of 
them  here  at  this  very  moment ;  I  can  see  them  for 
myself ;  there  is  Crito,  my  contemporary,  who  belongs  to 
the  same  deme  as  I,  the  father  of  Critobulus  there ;  and 
here  is  Lusanias  of  Sphettos,  the  father  of  Aeschines,  who  33  ^ 
is  beside  him  ;  and  Antiphon  of  Kephisia,  the  father  of 
Epigenes  ;  and  others  too  whose  brothers  have  spent  their 
time  with  me,  Nicostratus,  the  son  of  Theozotides,  brother 
of  Theodotus.  Theodotus  is  dead  ;  so  it  cannot  be  his 
entreaty  that  has  stopped  his  brother.  And  Paralus  is  here, 
the  son  of  Demodocus,  whose  brother  Theages  was  ;  and  34  A 
Adeimantus,  the  son  of  Ariston,  whose  brother  Plato  I 
see,  and  Aiantodorus  with  his  brother  Apollodorus  too. 

And  I  could  tell  you  of  many  more,  one  of  whom  at 
least  Meletus  should  have  called  as  a  witness  in  his  attack  ; 
or,  if  he  forgot  then,  let  him  call  one  now,  and  I  will 
stand  aside,  and  he  can  speak  if  he  has  anything  to  say. 

But,  gentlemen,  you  will  find  precisely  the  reverse;  you  will 
find  them  all  prepared  to  stand  by  me,  the  man  who  has 
done  the  harm,  the  man  who  has  injured  their  nearest  and 
dearest,  as  Meletus  and  Anytus  say.  Those,  perhaps,  34  B 
who  are  ruined  themselves  might  have  some  reason  for 
supporting  me,  but  those  who  are  uncorrupted, — men  of 
advancing  years,  their  relatives, — what  other  reason  could 
they  have  for  their  support  except  the  right  and  worthy 
reason  that  they  know  Meletus  is  lying  and  I  am  speaking 
the  truth  ? 

XXIII.  There,  gentlemen,  that  is  on  the  whole  what  I 
had  to  say  in  my  defence,  with  something  more,  perhaps, 
to  the  same  effect.  Now  there  may  be  a  man  among  34  C 


104 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


ό  μεν  καί  ελάττω  τουτουι  του  άγώνος  αγώνα  άγωνιζόμενος 
εδεήθη  τε  και  ικετευσε  τους  δικαστάς  μετά  πολλών  δακρύων, 
παιδία  re  αυτόν  άναβιβα σάμενος,  ϊνα  δ  τι  μάλιστα  ελεηθείη, 
και  άλλους  των  οικείων  και  φίλων  πολλούς,  εγώ  δε  ουδεν 
άρα  τούτων  ποιήσω,  και  ταυτα  κινδυνευων,  ως  αν  δόζαιμι, 
τον  έσχατον  κίνδυνον,  τάχ’  ουν  τις  ταυτα  εννοήσας  αυθαδε- 
στερον  αν  προς  με  σχοίη,  και  όργισθείς  αυτοΐς  τουτοις  θεΐτο 
αν  μετ  οργής  την  ψήφον,  ει  δή  τις  υμών  όντως  εχει, — οΰκ 
34  Όά£ιώ  μεν  γάρ  εγωγε*  ει  δ’  ουν,  επιεική  αν  μοι  δοκω  προς 
τούτον  λεγειν  λεγων  δτι  εμοί,  ω  άριστε,  εισίν  μεν  που  τινες 
καί  οικείοι*  και  γάρ,  τούτο  αυτό  το  τον  ' Ομήρου ,  οΰδ’  εγώ 
απο  ορυος  ουο  απο  πετρης  πεφυκα,  αλλ  εξ  α νσρωπων, 
ώστε  καί  οικείοι  μοί  εισι  καί  υίεΐς,  ώ  άνδρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  τρεις, 
εις  μεν  μειρακιον  ηοη,  ουο  οε  παιοια *  αΛΑ  όμως  ονόεν 
αυτών  δεύρο  άναβιβασάμενος  δεήσομαι  υμών  άποψηφί- 
σασθαι.  τι  δή  ουν  ουδεν  τούτων  ποιήσω;  οΰκ  αυθαδιζό- 
34  Ε  μένος,  ω  άνδρες  * Αθηναίοι ,  οΰδ’  υμάς  άτιμάζων,  άλλ?  εΐ  μεν 
θαρραλεως  εγώ  εχω  προς  θάνατον  ή  μη,  άλλος  λόγος,  προς 
ουν  οοςαν  και  εμοι  και  νμιν  και  ολη  τη  πολει  ου  μοι 
δοκεΐ  καλόν  είναι  εμε  τούτων  ουδεν  ποιείν  καί  τηλικόνδε 
όντα  καί  τούτο  τοϋνομα  εχοντα,  ει τ  ουν  αληθές  ει τ  ουν 
ψευδός *  άλλ’  ουν  δεδογμενον  γε  εστι  τον  Σωκράτη  διαφερειν 
3  5  Α  τινΐ  τών  πολλών  |  ανθρώπων.  ,  ει  ουν  υμών  οι  δοκονντες 
διαφερειν  είτε  σοφία  είτε  ανδρεία  είτε  άλλη  ήτινιοΰν  apery 
τοιοΰτοι  εσονται,  αισχρόν  αν  είη*  οΐουσπερ  εγώ  πολλάκις 
εώρακά  τινας,  όταν  κρίνωνται,  δοκονντας  μεν  τι  είναι,  θαυ¬ 
μάσια  δε  εργαζομένους,  ως  δεινόν  τι  οιομενους  πείσεσθαι  εΐ 


THE  APOLOGY 


105 


you  who  will  feel  annoyed  if  he  remembers  his  own 
conduct  when  undergoing  a  trial  far  less  serious  than 
this  of  mine;  how  he  prayed  and  supplicated  the  judges 
with  floods  of  tears,  and  brought  his  little  children  into 
court  to  roiise  as  much  pity  as  possible,  and  others  of  his 
family  and  many  of  his  friends;  but  I,  it  would  appear, 
will  not  do  anything  of  the  kind,  and  that  in  the  face, 
as  it  might  seem,  of  the  utmost  danger.  Such  a  man,  it 
may  be,  observing  this,  will  harden  himself  against  me ; 
this  one  fact  will  enrage  him  and  he  will  give  his  vote  in 
anger.  If  this  is  so  with  any  of  you, — I  do  not  say  it  is,  34 D 
but  if  it  is, — I  think  it  would  be  reasonable  for  me  to  say, 

“  I  too,  my  good  man,  have  kindred  of  my  own,  I  too  was 
not  born,  as  Homer  says,  ‘  from  stock  or  stone/  but 
from  men,  so  that  I  have  kinsfolk  and  sons  also,  three 
sons, — the  eldest  of  them  is  already  a  stripling,  the  other 
two  are  children.  And  yet  I  do  not  intend  to  bring 
one  of  them  here,  or  entreat  you  to  acquit  me.”  And 
why  is  it  that  I  will  not  do  anything  of  the  kind  ?  Not 
from  pride,  men  of  Athens,  nor  from  disrespect  for  you :  34  E 
nor  is  it  because  I  am  at  peace  about  death  ;  it  is  for 
the  sake  of  my  honour  and  yours  and  the  honour  of  the 
city.  I  do  not  think  it  fitting  that  I  should  do  such 
things,  a  man  of  my  years,  and  with  the  name  I  bear ; 
it  may  be  true  or  false,  but  at  any  rate  it  is  believed 
that  Socrates  is  in  some  way  different  from  most  other 
men.  And  if  those  among  you  who  bear  a  name  for  3  5  A 
wisdom  or  courage  or  any  other  virtue  were  to  act 
like  this,  it  would  be  disgraceful.  I  have  seen  it  often 
in  others,  when  they  came  under  trial,  men  of  some 
repute,  but  who  behaved  in  a  most  extraordinary  way, 
thinking,  apparently,  that  it  would  be  a  fearful  thing  for 


ιο6 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


άποθανονντ  at,  ώσπερ  αθανάτων  Ισο  μενών,  αν  υμείς  αυτους 
μη  άποκτεί νητε·  οι  εμοί  δοκουσιν  αισχύνην  τη  πόλει  περιάπ- 
τειν,  ωστ  αν  τινα  καί  των  ξένων  υπολ αβείν  or ι  οι  δια φε- 
35  Β ροντες  * Αθηναίων  εις  αρετήν,  ους  αυτοί  εαυτόν  εν  τε  ταίς 
άρχαίς  και  ταίς  άλλαις  τιμαΐς  προκρίνουσιν,  οντοι  γυναικών 
ουδεν  δια φερουσιν.  ταΰτα  γά ρ,  ω  άνδρες  Αθηναίοι,  ούτε 
υμάς  χρη  ποιείν  τους  δοκοΰντας  και  όττηουν  τι  είναι,  ουτ, 
αν  ημείς  ποιώ  μεν,  υμάς  επιτρεπειν,  άλλα  τούτο  αυτό  ενδεί- 
κνυσθαι,  οτι  πολύ  μάλλον  καταφηφιείσθι  του  τα  ελεεινά 
ταΰτα  δράματα  είσ άγοντος  και  καταγελαστον  την  πόλιν 
ποιουντος  η  του  ησυχίαν  άγοντος. 

XXIV.  Χωρίς  δε  της  δόξης,  ω  άνδρες,  ουδέ  δίκαιον  μοι 
3  5  Ο  δοκεΐ  είναι  δείσθαι  του  δικαστοΰ  ουδέ  δεόμενον  άποφευγειν, 
άλλα  δίδασκαν  και  πείθειν.  ου  γάρ  επί  τουτω  κάθηται  ο 
δικαστής,  επί  τω  καταχαρίζεσθαι  τα  δίκαια,  άλλ’  επί  τω 
κρίνειν  ταΰτα*  και  δμωμοκεν  ου  χαριείσθαι  οις  αν  δοκη 
αίιτω,  άλλα  δικάσειν  κατά  τους  νόμους,  ουκουν  χρη  ούτε 
ημάς  εθίζειν  υμάς  επιορκείν,  ουθ>  υμάς  εθίζεσθαι'  ουδέτε¬ 
ροι  γάρ  άν  ημών  ευσεβοίεν.  μη  ουν  άξιουτε  με,  ω  άνδρες 
’ Αθηναίοι ,  τοιαΰτα  δεΐν  προς  υμάς  πράττειν,  ά  μήτε  ηγούμαι 
3  5  Ο  καλά  είναι  μήτε  δίκαια  μήτε  όσια,  άλλως  τε  μεντοι  νη  Αία 
πάντως  καί  άσεβείας  φευγοντα  υπο  Μελάτου  τουτουί. 
σαφώς  γάρ  άν,  εί  πείθοιμι  υμάς  καί  τω  δείσθαι  βιαζοίμην 
ομωμοκότ ας,  θεούς  άν  διδάσκοιμι  μη  ηγείσθαι  υμάς  είναι, 
καί  άτεχνως  άπολογουμενος  κατηγοροίην  άν  εμαυτου  ως 
θεούς  ου  νομίζω,  άλλα  πολλου  δει  ούτως  εχειν’  νομίζω 
τε  γάρ,  ω  άνδρες  Αθηναίοι,  ως  ουδείς  των  εμων  κατηγόρων, 
καί  υμίν  επιτρέπω  καί  τω  θεω  κρίναι  περί  εμού  οπη  μελλει 


εμοί  τε  άριστα  είναι  καί  υμίν. 


THE  APOLOGY 


io  7 

them  to  die  ;  as  though  they  would  be  immortal  if  you  did 
not  put  them  to  death.  Such  men,  I  think,  bring  disgrace 
upon  the  city,  and  any  stranger  might  suppose  that  the 
Athenians  who  bore  the  highest  nanie  for  virtue,  who  had  3  5  B 
been  chosen  out  expressly  for  office  and  reward,  were  no 
whit  better  than  women.  We  must  not  behave  so,  men  of 
Athens,  those  of  us  who  are  thought  to  be  of  any  worth 
at  all,  and  you  must  not  allow  it,  should  we  try :  you  must 
make  it  plain,  and  quite  plain,  that  you  will  be  more  ready 
to  condemn  the  man  who  acts  these  pitiful  scenes  before 
you  and  makes  the  city  absurd,  than  him  who  holds  his 
peace. 

XXIV.  Even  putting  honour  aside,  gentlemen,  it  does 
not  seem  to  me  right  to  supplicate  a  judge  and  gain  3  5  C 
acquittal  so :  we  ought  rather  to  instruct  him  and  convince 
him.  The  judge  does  not  sit  here  to  grant  justice  as  a 
favour,  but  to  try  the  case ;  he  has  sworn,  not  that  he  will 
favour  those  he  chooses,  but  that  he  will  judge  according  to 
/the  law.  So  we  should  not  teach  you  to  break  your  oath, 
and  you  should  not  let  yourselves  be  taught.  Neither  of 
us  would  reverence  the  Gods  if  we  did  that.  Therefore 
you  must  not  expect  me,  men  of  Athens,  to  act  towards 
you  in  a  way  which  I  do  not  think  seemly  or  right  or  3  5  D 
reverent — more  especially  when  I  am  under  trial  for 
impiety,  and  have  Meletus  here  to  face.  For  plainly,  were 
I  to  win  you  over  by  my  entreaties,  and  have  you  do 
violence  to  your  oath,  plainly  I  should  be  teaching  you  not 
to  believe  in  the  Gods,  and  my  own  speech  would  accuse 
me  unmistakably  of  unbelief.  But  it  is  far  from  being  so  ; 
for  I  believe,  men  of  Athens,  as  not  one  of  my  accusers 
believes,  and  I  leave  it  to  you  and  to  God  to  decide  my 
case  as  may  be  best  for  me  and  you. 


PART  II 


AFTER  THE  VERDICT  AND  BEFORE  THE  SENTENCE 


35  E  XXV.  To  μεν  μη  άγανακτειν,  ώ  άνδρε ς  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  επί  j 

36  Αχουτω  τω  γεγονότι,  οτι  μου  κατεψηφίσασθε,  άλλα  re  μοι 

πολλά,  Συμβάλλεται,  καί  ουκ  ανέλπιστοι  μοι  γεγονεν  τό 
γεγονός  τούτο,  άλλα  πολύ  μάλλον  θαυμάζω  εκατερων  των 
ψήφων  τον  γεγονότα  αριθμόν,  ου  γάρ  ωόμην  εγωγε  ουτω 
παρ’  ολίγον  εσεσθαι  άλλα  παρά  πολύ*  νυν  δε,  ως  εοικεν ,  εί 
τριάκοντα  μόναι  μετεπεσον  των  ψήφων,  άπεπεφευγη  αν. 
Μ ελητον  μεν  ουν,  ως  εμοι  δοκώ,  και  νυν  άποπεφευγα,  καί 
ου  μόνον  άποπεφευγα,  άλλα  π  αντί  όηλον  τούτο  γε,  ότι,  εί 
μη  άνεβη  "Ανυτος  καί  Αυκων  κατηγορησοντες  εμού,  καν 
ωφλε  χιλίας  όραχμάς,  ου  μεταλαβων  το  πεμπτον  μέρος 
36  Βτών  ψήφων. 

XXVI.  Ύιμάται  δ’  ουν  μοι  ό  άνηρ  θανάτου,  ειεν  εγώ 
δε  όη  τίνος  υμΐν  άντιτιμησομαι,  ω  άνόρες  ’ Αθηναίοι ;  η 
οηλον  οτι  της  αξίας  ;  τι  ουν ;  τι  άξιος  ειμι  πασειν  η  αποτι- 
σαι,  ο  τι  μαθων  εν  τω  βίω  ουχ  ησυχίαν  ηγον,  άλλ’  άμελησας 
ωνπερ  οι  πολλοί,  χρηματισμου  τε  και  οικονομίας  και  στρα¬ 
τηγιών  και  δημηγοριών  και  των  άλλων,  αρχών  καί  Συνωμο¬ 
σιών  και  στάσεων,  των  εν  τη  πόλει  γιγνομενων,  ηγησά- 
36  C  μένος  εμαυτον  τω  οντι  επιει κεστερον  είναι  η  ώστε  εις  ταυτ 
ιόντα  σωζεσθαι ,  ενταύθα  μεν  ουκ  ηα,  οι  ελθων  μήτε  υμίν 
μήτε  εμαυτω  ε/χελλον  μηύεν  οφελος  είναι,  επι  οε  το  ιοια 
έκαστον  ίων  ευεργετεΐν  την  μεγίστην  ευεργεσίαν,  ως  εγώ 

φημι,  ενταύθα  ηα,  επιχείρων  έκαστον  υμών  πείθειν  μη 

Ιθ8 


PART  II  * 


y 


AFTER  THE  VERDICT  AND  BEFORE  THE  SENTENCE 

XXV.  There  are  many  reasons,  men  of  Athens,  why  3  5  E 
I  feel  no  distress  at  what  has  now  occurred,  I  mean  your  36  A 
condemnation  of  me.  It  is  not  unexpected ;  on  the  con¬ 
trary,  I  am  surprised  at  the  number  of  votes  on  either 
side.  I  did  not  think  it  would  be  so  close.  I  thought  the 
majority  would  be  great ;  but  in  fact,  so  it  appears,  if  only 
thirty  votes  had  gone  otherwise,  I  should  have  been 
acquitted.  Against  Meletus,  as  it  is,  I  appear  to  have 
won,  and  not  only  so,  but  it  is  clear  to  every  one  that  if 
Anytus  and  Lycon  had  not  come  forward  to  accuse  me, 

he  would  have  been  fined  a  thousand  drachmas,  for  he 
would  not  have  obtained  a  fifth  part  of  the  votes.  36  B 

XXVI.  The  penalty  he  fixes  for  me  is,  I  understand, 
death.  Very  good.  And  what  am  I  going  to  fix  in  my 
turn,  men  of  Athens  ?  It  must  be,  must  it  not,  what  I 

deserve  ?  Wellr  then,  what  do  I  deserve  tn  rpppivp  nr  pay - 

because  I  chose  not  to  sit  quiet  all  my  life,  and  turned  , 

aside  from  what  most  men  care  for, — money-making  and 
household  affairs,  leadership  in  war  and  public  speaking, 
anT~~alT  the  offices  ancT  associations  and  factions  of  the 
State, — thinking" myself,  as  a~inatter  of  fact,  too  upright  to  36  C 
be  ^afe  if  I  went  intcTthat  life  ?  So  I  held  aloof  from  it 
all  ;  I  should  have  been  of  no  use  there  to  you  or  to 
myself,  but  I  set  about  going  in  private  to  each  individual 
man  and  doing  him  the  greatest  of  all  services — as  I 
assert — trying  to  persuade  every  one  of  you  not  to  think  -pf 

109 


I  ΙΟ 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


πρότερον  μήτε  των  εαυτοί  μηδενός  επιμελείσθαι,  πριν  εαυτοί 
επιμεληθείη,  όπως  ως  βέλτιστος  καί  φρονιμωτατος  έσοιτο, 
μήτε  των  της  πόλεως ,  πριν  αυτής  της  πόλεως ,  των  τε  άλλων 
3  6  D  οντω  κατά.  τον  αυτόν  τρόπον  επιμελείσθαι *  τι  ουν  είμ ι  α£ιος 
παθείν  τοιουτος  ών ;  αγαθόν  τι ,  ώ  άνδρες  * Αθηναίοι ,  εΐ  8ε ΐ 
ye  κατα  ττ)ν  άξίαν  ττ^  αλήθεια  τιμάσθαΐ’  και  ταΰτά  γε 
αγαθόν  τοιουτον,  ο  τι  αν  πρέποι  εμοί.  τι  ουν  πρέπει 
άνδρί  πένητι  ευεργέτη ,  δεομένω  άγειν  σχολήν  επί  τη  υμετέρα 
παρακελεΰσει ;  ουκ  έσθ  ο  τι  μάλλον,  ω  άνδρες  * Αθηναίοι , 
πρέπει  [ούτως],  ώς  τον  τοιουτον  άνδρα  εν  πρυτανείο)  σιτεΐ- 
σθαι,  πολύ  γε  μάλλον  η  εϊ  τις  υμών  ΐππω  η  ξυνωρίδι  η 
ζευγει  νενίκηκεν  ’ Ολυμπίασιν .  ό  μεν  γαρ  υμάς  ποιεί  ευδαί- 

36  Ε  μονας  δοκείν  είναι,  εγω  δε  είναι ·  και  ό  μεν  τροφής  ουδεν 

δεΐται,  εγω  δε  δέομαι,  ει  ουν  δει  με  κατα  τό  δίκαιον  της 

37  A  αξίας  τιμασθαι,  τούτον  |  τιμώ  μ  αι,  εν  πρυτανείω  σιτησεως. 

XXVII.  Ίσως  ουν  υμίν  καί  ταυτϊ  λέγων  παραπλησίως 
δοκω  λέγειν  ώσπερ  περί  του  οίκτου  καί  της  άντιβολησεως, 
απαυθαδιζόμενος'  τό  δε  ουκ  εστιν,  ω  ’ Αθηναίοι ,  τοιουτον, 
αλλα  τοιόνδε  μάλλον,  πέπεισμαι  εγώ  εκών  είναι  μηδένα 
άδικείν  ανθρώπων,  άλλο,  υμάς  τούτο  ου  πείθω ·  ολίγον  γάρ 
χρόνον  άλληλοις  διειλέγ μέθα'  επεί ,  ώς  εγωμαι,  ει  ην  υμίν 
νόμος,  ώσπερ  καί  άλλοις  άνθρωποις,  περί  θανάτου  μη  μίαν 
37  Β  ημέραν  μόνον  κρίνε ιν,  αλλα  πολλάς,  επείσθητε  αν *  νυν  δ’ 
ου  ραδιον  εν  χρόνω  δλιγω  μεγάλας  διαβολό-ς  άπολυεσθαι. 
πεπεισμένος  δη  εγω  μηδένα  άδικείν  πολλοί)  δέω  ερ, αυτόν  γε 
άδικησειν  καί  κατ’  εμαυτου  ερείν  αυτός,  ως  άξιός  είμί  τον 
κακοί,  καί  τιμησεσθ αι  τοιουτον  τίνος  εμαυτω.  τι  δείσας  ; 
η  μη  πάθω  τούτο,  ου  Μ  έλητός  μοι  τιμάται,  ό  φημι  ουκ 


THE  APOLOGY 


I  I  1 


what  he  had  but  rather  of  what  he  was,  and  how  he 
might  grow  wise  and  good,  nor  consider  what  the  city 
had,  but  what  the  city  was,  and  so  with  everything  else 
in  the  world.  What,  then,  do  I  deserve  for  this?  A36D 
reward,  men  of  Athens,  if  I  am  really  to  consider  my 
deserts,  and  a  reward,  moreover,  that  would  suit  me.  And 
what  reward  would  suit  a  poor  man  who  has  been  a  public 
benefactor,  and  who  is  bound  to  refrain  from  work  because 

J 

of  his  services  in  exhorting  you  ?  There  could  be  nothing 
so  suitable,  men  of  Athens,  as  a  place  at  the  table  in  the 
Presidents’  Hall ;  far  more  suitable  than  if  any  of  you  had 
won  a  horse-race  at  Olympia  or  a  chariot  race.  The 
Olympian  victor  brings  you  fancied  happiness,  but  I  bring  36  E 
you  real :  he  does  not  need  maintenance,  but  I  do.  If  I 
am  to  fix  what  I  deserve  in  all  fairness,  then  this  is  what 
I  fix  : — a  place  at  the  table  in  the  Presidents’  Hall.  37  A 
XXVII.  Perhaps  when  I  say  this  you  will  feel  that  I 
am  speaking  much  as  I  spoke  about  entreaties  for  pity,  that 
is  to  say,  in  a  spirit  of  pride  ;  but  it  is  not  so,  Athenians. 

This  is  how  it  is  :  I  am  convinced  that  I  havpnpypr  Hnnr 
wrong^to  any  man  intentionally,  but  I  cannot  convince 
you ;  wenave  only  had  a  little  time  to  talk  together. 

Had  it  been  the  custom  with  you,  as  with  other  nations, 
to  spend  not  one  day  but  many  on  a  trial  for  life  and 
death,  I  believe  you  would  have  been  convinced  ;  but,  as  37  B 
matters  are,  it  is  not  easy  to  remove  a  great  prejudice  in  a 
little  time. 


Well,  with  this  conviction  of  mine  that  I  have  never 
wronged  any  man,  I  am  far  from  meaning  to  wrong 
myself  by  saying  that  I  deserve  any  harm,  or  assigning 
myse!f~lniy thing  whatever  of  the  kincH  What  should  T 
be  afraid  of?  Of  suffering  what  Mcletus  has  assigned, 


1 12 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


είδέναι  οντ  el  άγα θόν  οντ  el  κακόν  έστιν ;  άντ'ι  τούτον  δη 


εχωμαι  ων  εν  οιδ’  οτι  κακών  οντων ;  τον  τιμησαμενος ; 


3  7  0  πότερον  δεσμόν  ;  και  τί  μe  δει  ζην  ev  δεσμωτηρίω,  δονλεν- 
οντα  τη  άει  καθισταμένη  άρχη,  τοις  'ένδεκα;  άλλα  χρημά¬ 
των ,  καί  δεδέσθαι  'έως  άν  εκτίσω  ;  αλλά  ταντόν  μοί  εστιν, 
οπερ  νυν  δη  ελεγον  ον  yap  εστι  μοι  χρήματα ,  όπόθεν 
εκτίσω.  άλλα  δη  φνγης  τιμήσω  μ  at ;  ίσως  yap  άν  μοι 
τουτου  τιμησαιτε.  πολλή  μένταν  με  φιλοφνχία  εχοι,  ει 
όντως  αλόγιστός  είμι  ώστε  μη  δννασθαι  λογίζεσθαι,  ότι 
νμείς  μεν  όντες  πολΐταί  μον  ονχ  οι οί  τε  έγένεσθε  ενεγκείν 
3  7-^  τά?  εμάς  δια τριβάς  και  τονς  λόγονς,  άλλ’  νμίν  βαρντεραι 
γεγόνασιν  και  επιφθονωτεραι,  ώστε  ζητείτε  αυτών  νννι 
άπαλλαγηναι,  άλλοι  δε  άρα  αυτά?  οίσονσι  ραδίως  ;  πολλοί) 
γε  δει,  ω  Αθηναίοι,  καλός  ονν  άν  μοι  6  βίος  εϊη  έζελθόντι, 
τηλικωδε  άνθρωπω  άλλην  εζ  άλλης  πόλεως  άμει βομενω 
και  εξελαννομενω  ζην.  εν  yap  ο  ιό  οτι,  οποί  αν  ελϋω, 
λέγοντος  εμον  άκροάσονται  οι  νέοι  ώσπερ  ενθάδε *  καν 
μεν  τοντονς  άπελαννω,  οντοι  εμέ  αυτοί  εζελωσι,  πείθοντες 
3  7  Ε  του?  πρεσβντέρονς ·  εάν  δέ  μη  άπελαννω,  οι  τούτων  πατέρες 
τε  και  οίκείοι  δι  αιιτονς  τοντονς. 

XXVIII.  νΙσω?  ονν  άν  τις  είποί'  σιγων  δέ  και  ησνχίαν 
άγων,  ω  Ζωκρατες,  ονχ  οιος  τ  εσει  ημιν  εξελϋων  ζην  ;  τοντι 
δη  έστι  πάντων  χαλεπωτα τον  πείσαί  τινας  νμων.  εάν  τε 
γάρ  λέγω  οτι  τω  θεω  άπειθείν  τοντ  έστίν  και  διά  τοντο 
αδύνατον  ησνχίαν  άγαν,  ον  πείσεσθέ  μοι  ώ?  είρωνενομένω' 
3  8  Α  |  eav  τ’  αν  λέγω  ότι  και  τνγχάνει  μέγιστον  άγαθόν  ον 
άνθρωπω  τοντο,  εκάστης  ημέρας  περί  άρετης  τονς  λόγονς 
ποιείσθαι  και  των  άλλων,  περί  ων  νμείς  εμον  άκονετε  δια- 


THE  APOLOGY 


IJ3 

when  I  say  that  I  do  not  know,  after  all,  whether  it  is 
not  good  ?  And  to  escape  it  I  am  to  choose  what  I  know 
quite  well  is  bad  ?  And  what  punishment  should  I  fix  ? 
Imprisonment  ?  Why  should  I  live  in  prison,  slave  to  the  37  C 
Eleven  *  of  the  day  ?  Or  should  I  say  a  fine,  with 
imprisonment  until  I  pay  it  ?  But  then  there  is  just  the 
difficulty  I  mentioned  a  moment  ago  :  I  have  no  money  to 
pay  a  fine.  Or  am  I  to  say  exile  ?  You  might,  I  know, 
choose  that  for  my  punishment.  My  love  of  life  would 
indeed  be  great  if  I  were  so  blind  as  not  to  see  that 
you,  my  own  fellow-citizens,  have  not  been  able  to  endure 
my  ways  and  words,  you  have  found  them  too  trying  and  37  D 
too  heavy  to  bear,  so  that  you  want  to  get  rid  of  them 
now.  And  if  that  is  so,  will  strangers  put  up  with  them  ? 

Far  from  it,  men  oF~Athens.  And  it  would  be  a  grand 
life  for  a  man  of  my  years  to  go  into  exile  and  wander 
about  from  one  city  to  another.  For  well  I  know  that 
wherever  I  went  the  young  men  would  listen  to  my  talk 
as  they  listen  here  ;  and  if  I  drove  them  away,  they  would 
drive  me  out  themselves  and  persuade  their  elders  to  side 
with  them,  and  if  I  let  them  come,  their  fathers  and  3  7  E 
kindred  would  banish  me  on  their  account. 

XXVIII.  Perhaps  some  one  will  say:  “  But,  Socrates, 
cannot  you  leave  us  and  live  in  peace  and  quietness  ?” 

Now  that  is  just  what  it  is  hardest  to  make  you,  some  of 
you,  believe.  If  I  were  to  say  that  this  would  be  to 
disobey  God,  and  therefore  I  cannot  hold  my  peace,  you 
would  not  believe  me ;  you  would  say  I  was  using  my 
irony.  And  if  I  say  again  that  it  is  in  fact  the  greatest  of  38  A 
all  goods  for  a  man  to  talk  about  virtue  every  day,  and  the 
other  matters  on  which  you  have  heard  me  speaking  and 

*  See  Note  7. 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


ιΐ4 


λεγορενου  καί  εμαντόν  καί  άλλους  εξετάζοντας,  6  δε  ανεξέ¬ 
ταστος  βίος  ον  βιωτός  άνθ ράπτω,  ταντα  8’  έτι  ηττον 
7 τείσεσθέ  μοι  λεγον τι.  τα  δε  εχει  μεν  ούτως,  ως  εγώ  φημι, 
ω  άν8ρες,  πείθειν  δε  ον  ραδιον.  και  εγώ  άμα  ονκ  είθισμαι 
Β  εμαντόν  άξιονν  κακόν  ούδε νός.  εΐ  μεν  yap  ην  μοι  χρήματα, 
ετιμησ άμην  αν  χρημάτων  όσα  ερελλον  εκτίσειν  ον8έν  yap 
αν  ερ λαβήν  ννν  όε — ον  yap  εστιν,  ει  μη  αρα  οσον  αν  εγω 
8νναίμην  εκτΐσαι,  τοσοντον  βονΧεσθέ.  μοι  τιμησαι.  Ισως 
8'  αν  8νν αίμην  εκτΐσαι  νμΐν  μνάν  αργυρίου·  τοσοντον  ονν 
τιμωμαι.  Πλάτων  δε  δδε,  ώ  άν8ρες  ’Αθηναίοι,  και  Κριτών 
καί,  Κριτόβουλος  και  Απολλόδωρος  κελευουσί  με  τριάκοντα 
μνων  τιμησασθαι,  αυτοί  δ5  εγγυασ#αι*  τιμωμαι,  ουν 
τοσοντον,  εγγυ^ταί  δ’  νμΐν  εσοντα ι  του  αργυρίου  ουτοι 
άξιόχρεω. 

PART  III 


AFTER  THE  SENTENCE  OF  DEATH 


C  XXIX.  Ου  ποΧΧον  y  ένεκα  χρόνον,  ω  άν8ρες  ’ Αθηναίοι , 
όνομα  εξετε  καί  αιτίαν  υπό  των  βονΧο μενών  την  πόλιν 
λοιδορεΐν,  ως  Σωκράτη  άπεκτόνατε,  άνδρα  σοφόν *  φησονσι 
yap  8η  με  σοφόν  είναι,  εί  καί  μη  είμί,  οί  βονΧόμενοι  νμΐν 
όνεώίζειν.  εί  ονν  περιερείνατε  όλ/γον  χρόνον,  από  του 
αντομάτον  άν  νμΐν  τούτο  εγένετο’  όράτε  yap  8η  την  ηΧικίαν, 
ότι  πόρρω  τ^δ^  ίστί  του  βίου,  θανάτου  δε  εγγύς,  λέγω  δε 
D  τούτο  ου  προς  πάντας  υρας,  αλλά  προς  τους  ερου  κατα- 
ψηφισαμένονς  θάνατον,  λε'γω  δε  καί  τόδε  προς  τους  αυτους 
τουτους.  ίσως  με  οΐεσθε,  ω  άν8ρες,  απορία  λόγων  εαλωκε- 
ναι  τοιοντων,  οις  άν  υρ,ας  έπεισα,  εί  ψμην  δείν  άπαντα  ποιεΐν 
καί  λε'γειν,  ώστε  άπoφvyεΐv  την  8ίκην.  πολλοί)  γε  δει. 


^  ArJL  Μ'-*·  "  -·1^  ·  ' 


* 


THE  APOLOGY 


making  inquiry  into  myself  and  others :  if  I  say  that  the  ^ 
life  without  inquiry  is  no  life  foiu-man — you  would  believe  ^ 
that  even  less.  V  et  it  is  so,  even  as  I  tell  you — only  it  is 
not  easy  to  get  it  believed.  Moreover,  I  am  not  accus¬ 
tomed  to  think  myself  deserving  of  punishment.  ^.However,  1 
if  I  had  had  any  money  I  should  have  fixed  a  price  that  ! .38  B 
could  pay,  tor  that  would  not  have  harmed  me  at  all ;  but 
as  it  is,  since  1  have  no  money — unless  perhaps  you  would 
consent  to  fix  only  so  much  as  1  could  afford  to  pay  ? 

Perhaps  i  might  be  able  to  pay  one  mina  silver;*  and  I 

will  fix  the  fine  at  that.  But  Plato  here,  gentlemen,  and 
Crito,  and  Critobulus,  and  Apollodorus,  beg  me  to  say 
thirty  minas,  and  they  tell  me  they  will  guarantee  it.  So 
I  will  fix  it  at  this  sum,  and  these  men,  on  whom  you 
can  rely,  will  be  sureties  for  the  amount. 


vU 


PART  III 

AFTER  THE  SENTENCE  OF  DEATH 

XXIX.  You  have  hastened  matters  a  little,  men  of 3  8  C 
Athens,  but  for  that  little  gain  you  will  be  called  the 
murderers  of  Socrates  the  Wise  by  all  who  want  to  find 
fault  with  the  city..  For  those  who  wish  to  reproach 
you  will  insist  that  I  am  wise,  though  I  may  not  be  so. 

Had  you  but  waited  a  little  longer,  you  would  have  found 
this  happen  of  itself :  ^for  you  can  see  how  old  I  am,  far 
on  in  life,  with  death  at  hand.  In  this  I  am  not  speaking' 
to  all  of  you,  but  only  to  those  who  have  sentenced  me  to  38  D 
death.  And^to  them  I  will  say  one  thing  more.  It  may 
be,  gentlemen/that  you  imagine  I  have  been  convictecPTor 
laclc_ot  arguments  by  which.  I  could  hnvo  mnvinQpr)  yo^ 

had  I  thought  it  right  to  say  and— do-anythmg  in  ordpr — 
to  escape  punishment.  Far  from  it.  No;  convicted  I 

*  See  Introduction,  p.  xiv. 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


1 16 


άλλ’  απορία  μεν  εάλωκα,  ον  μεντοι  λόγων,  άλλα  τόλμης 
καί  αναισχυντίας  και  τον  εθελειν  λεγειν  προς  υμάς  τοιαυτα, 
οΓ  αν  υμίν  ηδιστα  ην  ακούε  tv,  θρηνουντός  τε  μου  καί 
οδυρο  μενού  καί  αλλα  ποιονντος  καί  λεγοντος  πολλά  καί 

38  Ε  ανάξια  εμού,  ως  εγώ  φημ ΐ'  οΐα  8η  καί  εΐθισθε  υμείς  των 

άλλων  άκουειν.  άλλ’  ούτε  τότε  ωηθην  8είν  ενεκα  τον 
κίνδυνου  πράξαι  ούδεν  ά νελενθερον,  ούτε  νυν  μοι  μεταμελει 
ούτως  άπολογησαμενω,  άλλα  πολύ  μάλλον  αιρουμαι  ώδε 
άπολο-γησάμενος  τεθνάναι  η  εκείνως  ζην'  ούτε  yap  εν  δίκη 
ουτ  εν  πολεμώ  ουτ  εμε  ουτ  άλλον  ουοενα  οει  τούτο  \ 

39  Α  μηχανάσθαι,  όπως  άποφευξεται  παν  ποιων  θάνατον,  καί 

yap  εν  ταΐς  μάχαις  πολλάκις  δηλον  yίyvετaι  ότι  το  γε 
άποθανείν  αν  τις  εκφυγο ι  καί  όπλα  άφείς  καί  εφ ’  ίκετείαν 
τραπόμενος  των  διωκόντων'  καί  άλλαι  μηχαναί  πολλαί 
εισιν  εν  εκάστοις  τοίς  κίνδυνο ις,  ώστε  διαφευγειν  θάνατον, 
εάν  τις  τολμά  παν  ποιείν  καί  λεγειν.  άλλα  μη  ου  τοΰτ ’  η 
χαλεπόν,  ω  άνδρες,  θάνατον  εκφυγείν,  αλλά  πολύ  χαλε- 

39  Βπώτερον  πονηριάν'  θάττον  yap  θανάτου  θεί.  καί  νυν  εγώ 
μεν  άτε  βραδύς  ων  καί  πρεσβύτης  υπό  τον  βραδύτερου 
εάλων,  οί  δ’  εμοί  κατήγοροι  άτε  δεινοί  καί  οξείς  όντες  υπό 
του  θάττονος,  της  κακίας,  καί  νυν  εγώ  μεν  άπειμι  υφ ’  υμών 
θανάτου  δίκην  όφλων,  ουτοι  δ’  υπό  της  αλήθειας  ωφληκότες 
μοχθηρί αν  καί  αδικίαν,  καί  εγώ  τε  τω  τιμή  μάτι  εμμενω 
καί  ουτοι.  ταυτα  μεν  που  ίσως  ούτως  καί  εδει  σχείν,  καί 
οιμαι  αυτά  μετρίως  εχειν. 

39  Ο  XXX.  Τό  δε  δή  μετά  τούτο  επιθυμώ  υμίν  χρησμωδησαι > 
ω  καταφηφισάμενοί  μου-  καί  γάρ  ειμι  ηδη  ενταύθα,  εν  ώ 
μάλιστα  άνθρωποι  χρησμωδουσιν,  όταν  μελλωσιν  άποθα- 
νείσθαι.  φημί  γάρ,  ώ  άνδρες,  οί  εμε  άπεκτόνατε,  τιμωρίαν 
υμίν  ηξειν  ευθυς  μετά  τον  εμόν  θάνατον  πολύ  χαλεπωτεραν 
νη  Δια  η  οΓαν  εμε  άπεκτόνατε'  νυν  γάρ  τούτο  είργάσεσθε 


THE  APOLOGY 


117 

have  been,  for  lack  of — not  arguments,  but  audacity  and 
impudence,  and  readiness  to  say  what  would  have  been  w'' 
a  delighLJoc-yQii  to  hear,  lamenting  and  bewailing  mv 
position,  saying  and  doing  all  kinds  of  things  unworthy  nf 
myself,  as  I  consider,  but  such  as  you  have  grown  accustomed 
to^ear~fromothers.  I  did  not  think  it  right  then  to 
Behave  through  tear  unlike  a  free-born  man,  and  I  do  not 
repent  now  of  my  defence ;  I  would  far  rather  die  after 
that  defence  than  live  upon  your  terms.  As  in  war,  so  in 
a  court  of  justice,  not  I  nor  any  man  should  scheme  to 
escape  death  by  any  and  every  means.  Many  a  time  in  39  A 
battle  it  is  plain  the  soldier  could  avoid  death  if  he  flung 
away  his  arms  and  turned  to  supplicate  his  pursuers,  and  1  ^ 
there  are  many  such  devices  in  every  hour  of  danger  for  v 
escaping  death,  i£_3ve_are  preparedjo  say,  and  do  anylhipg  ' 
whatever.  But,  sirs,  it  may  be  that  the  difficulty  is  not 
to  flee  from  death,  but  from  guilt.  Guiltis  swifter  than 
death.  And  so  it  is  that  I,  who  am  slow  and  old,  have  39  B 
been  caught  by  the  slower-paced,  and  my  accusers  who 
are  clever  and  quick,  by  the  quick-footed,  by  wickedness. 

And  now  I  am  to  go  away,  under  sentence  of  death  from 


you :  but  on  them  truth  has  passed  sentence  of  unrighteous¬ 
ness  and  injustice.  I  abide  by  the  decision,  and  so  must  y 
they.  Perhapslndeed,  it  had  to  be  just  so  :  and  I  think  7^ 
it  is  very  well. 

XXX.  And  now  that  that  is  over  1  desire  to  prophecy  39  C 
to  you,  you  who  have  condemned  me.  For  now  I  have 
come  to  the  time  when  men  can  prophecy — when  they  are 
to  die.  I  say  to  you,  you  who  have  killed  me,  punish¬ 
ment  will  fall  on  you  immediately  after  my  death,  far 
heavier  for  you  to  bear — I  call  God  to  witness ! — than  your 
punishment  of  me.  For  you  have  done  this  thinking  to' 


1 1 8 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


οίόμενοι  μεν  άπαλλάξεσθαι  τον  διδόναι  ελεγχον  του  βίου,  το 
δε  νμΐν  πολύ  Εναντίον  άποβησεται,  ώ?  εγώ  φημι.  πλείους 
εσονται  υμάς  οι  ελεγχοντες,  ους  νυν  εγώ  κατεΐχον,  υμείς  δε 

39^  ονκ  ησθάνεσθε-  και  χαλεπωτεροι  εσονται  δσω  νεωτεροί 
είσιν,  καί  υμείς  μάλλον  αγανακτήσετε,  ει  γάρ  οίεσθε 
’  αποκτείνοντες  ανθρώπους  επισχησειν  του  όνειδίζειν  τινα 
νμιν  οτι  ουκ  ορσως  ζητε,  ονκ  ορσως  δια νοεισσε’  ου  γαρ 
εσσ  αυτή  ή  απαλλαγή  ούτε  πανν  δυνατή  ούτε  καλή ,  αλλ 
εκείνη  καί  καλλίστη  καί  ράστη,  μη  τους  άλλους  κολουειν, 
άλλ’  εαυτόν  παρασκευάζειν  όπως  εσται  ως  βέλτιστος, 
ταυτα  μεν  ονν  νμΐν  τοΐς  καταψηφισαμενοις  μαντενσάμενος 
άπαλλάττομαι. 

39  Ε  XXXI.  Τοις  δε  άποφηφισαμενοις  ήδεως  αν  διαλεχθείην 
υπέρ  τον  γεγονότος  τουτονϊ  πράγματος,  εν  ω  οι  άρχοντες 
ασχολίαν  άγουσι  καί  ονπω  έρχομαι  οϊ  ελθόντα  με  δει 
τεθνάναι.  αλλά  μοι,  ω  άνδρες,  παραμείνατε  τοσοντον 
χρόνον  ουδεν  γάρ  κωλύει  διαμυθολογήσαι  προς  άλληλους, 

4°  Α  %ως  εξεστιν.  νμΐν  γάρ  ως  |  φίλοις  ουσιν  επιδεΐξαι  ε#ελω  το 
νυνί  μοι  ξυμβεβηκος  τί  ποτέ  νοεί,  εμοί  γάρ,  ω  ανδρες 
δικασταί — υμάς  γάρ  δικαστάς  καλών  όρθως  αν  καλοίην — 
θαυμάσιόν  τι  γεγονεν.  ή  γάρ  εΐωθνΐά  μοι  μαντική  ή  του 
δαιμόνιου  εν  μεν  τω  πρόσθεν  χρόνω  παντί  πάνυ  πυκνή  αεί 
ην  καί  πάνυ  επί  σμικροΐς  ενάντιον μενη,  εΐ  τι  μελλοιμι  μη 
όρθως  πράξειν.  νυνί  δε  ξυμβεβηκε  μοι,  άπερ  ορατέ  καί 
αυτοί,  ταντί  ά  γε  δή  οϊηθείη  αν  τις  καί  νομίζεται  έσχατα 

4Ο  Β  κακών  είναι,  εμοί  δε  ούτε  εξιόντι  εωθεν  οικοθεν  ήναντιωθη 
το  του  θεοί)  σημεΐον,  ούτε  ήνίκα  άνεβαινον  ενταυθοΐ  επί  τό 
δικαστηρίου,  ούτε  εν  τω  λόγω  ουδαμου  μελλοντί  τι  ερεΐν 
καί  τοι  εν  άλλοις  λόγοις  πολλαχου  δη  με  επεσχε  λεγοντα 
μεταξύ’  νυν  δε  ουδαμου  περί  ταυτην  την  πράξιν  οντ  εν 
εργω  ονδενί  οντ  εν  λόγω  ήνα ντίωταί  μοι.  τί  ουν  αίτιον 


3 

,Μ'*  ί 


THE  APOLOGY 

f  or  S  i  to  il 

escape  the  need  of  giving  any  account  of  your  livesj  but 
exactly  the  contrary  will  come  to  pass,  and  so  I  tell  you. 
Those  who  will  call  you  to  account  will  be  more  numerous,  yU 

— I  have  kept  them  back  till  now,  and  you  have  not  _ _ _ 

noticed  them, — and  they  will  be  the  harder  to  bear  39  D 
inasmuch  as  they  are  younger,  and  you  will  be  troubled 
all  the  more.  For  if  you  think  that  by  putting  men  to 
death  you  can  stop  every  one  from  blaming  you  for  living 


as  you  should  not  live,  1  tell  you  you  are  mistaken ;  that  way 
~οΓ~ escape  is  neither  feasible  nor  noble ;  thePnoblest  way, 
and  the  easiest,  is  not  to  maim  others,  but  to  fit  ourselves 
for  righteousness.  That  is  the  prophecy  I  give  to  you 
who  have  condemned  me,  and  so  I  leave  you. 

^XXXI.  But  with  those  who  have  acquitted  me  1 39 


those  who  have  acquitted  me 
should  be  glad  to  talk  about  this  matter,  until  the  Archons 
are  at  leisure  and  I  go  to  the  place  where  I  am  to  die. 

So  I  will  ask  you,  gentlemen,  to  stay  with  me  for  the  time. 
There  is  no  reason  why  we  should  not  talk  together  while 
we  can,  and  tell  each  other  our  dreams.  I  would  like  4°  A 
to  show  you,  as  my  friends,  what  can  be  the  meaning  of 
this  that  has  befallen  me.  A  wonderfuLthing,  my  judges,— 
—for  I  may  call  you  judges,  and  not  call  youjmiiss,  in — 
wonderful  thing  has  happened  to  me.  The  waining 
that  comes  to  me,  my  spiritual  sign,  has  always  in  all  my 


former  life  been  most  incessant,  and  has  opposed  me  in 
most  trifling  matters,  whenever  I  was  about  to  act  amiss ; 
and  now  there  has  befallen  me,  as  you  see  yourselves,  what 
might  really  be  thought,  as  it  is  thought,  the  greatest  of  all 
evils.  And  yet,  when  I  left  my  home  in  the  morning,  the  4°  ΰ 
signal  from  God  was  not  against  me,  nor  when  I  came  up 
the  court,  nor  in  niV~speech,  whatever  _Lj&3s 
about  to  say;  and  yet  at  other  times  it  has  often  stopped 
me  in  the  very  middle  of  what  1  was  saying ;  but  never 


TON 


FAG 


)  l 

LTY 


:ol.. 

Li  BR  AR 


120 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


είναι  υπολαμβάνω  ;  εγώ  νμΐν  ερω·  κίνδυνε νει  yap  μοι  το 
ζνμβεβηκός  τοΐιτο  αγαθόν  γεγονεναι,  καί  ονκ  εσθ’  όπως 
40  C  ημάς  όρθως  νπολαμβά νομεν,  'όσοι  οιόμεθα  κακόν  είναι  το 
τεθνάναι.  μεγα  μοι  τεκμηριον  τούτον  γεγονεν*  ον  yap 
εσθ*  όπως  ονκ  ηναντιωθη  άν  μοι  τό  είωθός  σημεΐ ον,  εί  μη 
τι  εμελλον  εγώ  αγαθόν  πράξειν. 

XXXII.  Έννοήσωμεν  δε  καί  τηδε,  ως  πολλή  ελπίς 
εστιν  αγαθόν  αυτό  είναι,  δνοΐν  γάρ  θάτερόν  εστιν  τό 
τεθναναΐ'  η  yap  οιον  μηδέν  είναι,  μηδε  αΐσθησιν  μηδεμίαν 
μηδενος  εχειν  τον  τεθνεωτα,  η  κατά  τα  λεγάμενα  μεταβολή 
τις  τυγχάνει  ονσα  και  μετοικησις  τη  ψυχή  τον  τόπον  τον 
4°  D  ενθένδε  εις  άλλον  τοι τον.  και  είτε  μηδεμία  αίσθησίς  εστιν, 
άλλ’  οι  ον  νπνος,  επειδαν  τις  καθενδων  μηδ  όναρ  μηδέν  όρά, 
θανμάσιον  κέρδος  άν  είη  ό  θάνατος,  εγώ  γάρ  άν  οίμαι,  ει 
τινα  εκλεζάμενον  δεοι  ταντην  την  νύκτα,  εν  η  οϋτω  κατε- 
δαρθεν,  ώστε  μηδε  οναρ  ίδειν,  καί  τάς  άλλας  νύκτας  τε  καί 
ημέρας  τας  τον  βίου  τον  εαυτόν  άντιπαραθεντα  ταντη  τη 
ννκτι  δεοι  σκεψάμενον  είπεΐν,  πάσας  άμεινον  καί  ηδιον 
ημέρας  καί  νύκτας  ταντης  της  ννκτός  βεβίωκεν  εν  τω 
εαυτόν  βίω,  οίμαι  άν  μη  ότι  ιδιώτην  τινά,  άλλα  τον  μεγαν 

40  Ε  βασιλέα  εναριθμητονς  άν  ενρεΐν  αυτόν  ταντας  προς  τάς 

αλλας  ημέρας  και  νύκτας,  ει  ονν  τοιοντον  ό  θάνατός  εστιν, 
κέρδος  εγωγε  λέγω *  καί  γάρ  οΰδέν  πλείον  ό  πας  χρόνος 
φαίνεται  ουτω  δη  είναι  η  μία  νν£.  ει  δ’  αν  οιον  άποδημησαί 
εστιν  ο  θάνατος  ενθενδε  εις  άλλον  τόπον,  καί  άληθη  εστιν 
τα  λεγάμενα,  ως  άρα  εκεί  εισίν  άπαντες  οι  τεθνεωτες,  τι 
μείζον  αγαθόν  τούτον  είη  άν,  ω  άνδρες  δικασται;  εί  γάρ 

4 1  Α  τις  άφικόμενος  εις  'Άιδον,  απαλλαγείς  τούτων  |  των  φασκόν- 

των  δικαστών  είναι,  ενρησει  τους  αληθώς  δικαστάς,  οίπερ 
και  λέγονται  εκεί  δικαζειν,  Μινως  τε  καί  'Ραδάμανθυς  καί 
Αιακός  και  Ύριπτόλεμος,  και  άλλοι  όσοι  των  ημίθεων 
δίκαιοι  εγενοντο  εν  τω  εαυτών  βίω,  άρα  φανλη  άν  είη  η 


THE  APOLOGY 


I  2 1 


once  in  this  matter  has  it  opposed  me  in  any  word  or  deed. 

What  do  I  suppose  to  be  the  reason  ?  I  will  tell  you. 
Thjs^that  hasjjefallen  me  is  surely  good,  and  it  cannot  pos¬ 
sibly  be  that  we  are  right  in  our  opinion,  those  nf  ns  n/ho^n  C 
holdthat  death  is  an  evil.  A  great  proof  of  this  has  come 
to  me :  it  cannot  but  be  that  the  well-known  signal  would 
have  stopped  me,  unless  what  I  was  going  to  meet  was 
good. 

XXXII.  Let  us  look  at  it  in  this  way  too,  and  we  shall 
find  much  hope' that  it  is  so.  Death  must  be  one  of  two 
things :  either  it  is  to  have  no  consciousness  at  all  of  any-  ' 
thing  whatever,  or  else,  as  some  sayritTIs  a  kind  of  change" 
and  migration  of  the  soul  from  this  world  to  another. 

Now  if  there  is  no  consciousness  at  all,  and  it  is  like  40  D 

« 

sleep  when  the  sleeper  does  not  dream,  I  say  there  would 
be  a  wonderful  gain  in  death.  'For  I  am  sure  if  any  man 
were  to  take  that  night  in  which  he  slept  so  deeply  that 
he  saw  no  dreams,  and  put  beside  it  all  the  other  nights 
and  days  of  his  whole  life,  and  j^pmparc  them,  and  say  how 
many  of  them  all  were  better  spent_or  happier  than  that 
ofle  night, — I  am  sure  that  not  the  ordinary  man  alone,  but 
the  King  of  Persia  himself,  would  find  them  few  to  count.  40  E 
IfHeatin^TF^iisTature  I  would  consider  it  a  gain ;  for 
the  whole  of  time  would  seem  no  longer  than  one  single 
night.  But  if  it  is  a  journey  to  another  land,  if  what 
some  say  is  true  and  all  the  dead  are  really  there,  if  this 
is  so,  my  judges,  what  greater  good  could  there  be  ?  If 
a  man  were  to  go  to  the  House  of  Death,  and  leave  all 

these  self-styled  judges  to  find  the  true  judges  there,  who,  ^  τ 
so  it  is  said,  give  justice  in  that  world, — Minos  and 

Khadamanthus,  Aeacus  and  Triptolemns. — and — all _ the 

sons  of  the  Gods  who  have  done  justly  in  this  life, — 


122 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


αποδημία ;  η  αν  Όρφεΐ  ξυγγενέσθαι  καί  Μουσαιω  καί 
*Ησιόδω  και  'Ο  μη  ρω  επί  πόσω  αν  τις  δέξαιτ’  αν  υμών; 
εγω  μίν  yap  πολλάκις  θέλω  τεθνάναι,  εί  ταΰτ  έστίν  αληθη· 
έπεί  εμοιγε  καί  αυτω  θαυμαστή  αν  €Ϊη  η  διατριβή  αυτόθι, 

4 1  Β  οπότε  εντνχοιμι  ΐίαλαμηδει  και  Αιαντι  τώ  Τελα/χώνος  και 
εί  τις  άλλος  των  παλαιών  δια  κρίσιν  άδικον  τέθνηκεν 
άντιπαραβάλλοντι  τα  έ  μαντού  πάθη  προς  τα  εκείνων,  ώς 
εγώ  οίμαι,  ουκ  αν  αηδές  είη.  και  δη  και  το  μέγιστον, 
τους  έκεΐ  εξετάζοντα  και  έρεννώντα  ώσπερ  τους  ενταύθα 
διάγειν,  τις  αυτών  σοφός  έστιν  και  τις  οΐεται  μεν,  έστιν  δ ’ 
ον.  επι  ποσω  ο  αν  τις,  ω  ανορες  οικασται,  οε^αιτο  ε£ετα- 
σαι  τον  επι  Τροίαν  άγαγόντα  την  πολλην  στρατιάν  η 
41  Ο ’Οδυσσεα  η  Σίσυφον;  η  άλλους  μνρίους  αν  τις  είποι  και 
άνδρας  και  γυναίκας,  οις  εκεί  διαλέγεσθαι  και  £υν  είναι  καί 
έξετάζειν  άμηχανον  αν  είη  ευδαιμονίας,  πάντως  ου  δηπου 
τούτον  γε  ένεκα  οι  εκεί  άποκτείνουσι ·  τά  τε  γαρ  άλλα 
εύδαι μονέστεροί  είσιν  οι  εκεί  των  ενθάδε,  καί  ηδη  τον  λοιπόν 
χρόνον  αθάνατοί  είσιν,  είπερ  γε  τα  λεγάμενα  αληθη  έστίν. 

XXXIII.  Άλλα  καί  υμάς  χρη,  ώ  άνδρες  δικασται, 
ευέλπιδας  είναι  προς  τον  θάνατον,  καί  εν  τι  τούτο  διανο- 
4 1  Ο  εΐσθαι  αληθές,  οτι  ουκ  έστιν  άνδρί  άγαθω  κακόν  ονδέν  ούτε 
ζώντι  ούτε  τελευτησαντι,  ουδέ  αμελείται  υπό  θεών  τα 
τούτον  πράγματα·  ουδέ  τά  εμά  νυν  από  του  αυτομάτου 
γέγονεν,  αλλά  μοι  δηλόν  εστι  τούτο,  ότι  ηδη  τεθνάναι  καί 
άπηλλάχθαι  πραγμάτων  βέλτιον  ην  μοι.  διά  τοΐιτο  και 
εμέ  ουδαμοΐ)  άπέτρεφεν  τό  σημείον,  καί  εγωγε  τοις  κατα- 
φηφισαμένοις  μου  καί  τοις  κατηγόροις  ου  πάνυ  χαλεπαίνω. 
καί  τοι  ον  ταντη  τη  διανοία  κατεψηφίζοντό  μου  καί  κατηγο- 
4 1  Ε  ρουν,  άλλ’  οιόμενοι  βλάπτειν  τούτο  αύτοΐς  άξιον  μέμφε- 
σθαι.  τοσόνδε  μέντοι  αυτών  δέομαι·  τους  υιείς  μου,  επειδαν 


THE  APOLOGY 


123 


0>— -j 


would  that  journey  be  ill  to  take  ?  Or  to  meet  Orpheus 
and  Musaeus,  Hesiod  and  Homer,  what  would  you  give  ^ 
for  that,  any  of  you  ?  I  would  give  a  hundred  deaths  if 
it  is  true.  And  for  me  especially  it  would  be  a  won-  . 
derhiT life  there,  if  I  met  Palamades,  and  Ajax,  the  son  of 41  B 
Telamon,  or  any  of  the  men  of  old  who  died  by  an  unjust 
decree  :  to  compare  my  experience  with  theirs  would  be 
full  of  pleasure,  surely.  And  best  of  all,  to  go  on  still 
with  the  men  of  that  world  as  with  the  men  of  this, 
inquiring  and  questioning  and  learning  who  is  wise  among 
them,  and  who  may  think  he  is,  but  is  not.  How  much 
would  one  give,  my  judges,  to  question  the  hero  who  led 
the  host  at  Troy,  or  Odysseus,  or  Sisyphus,  or  any  of  the  41  C 
countless  men  and  women  I  could 'name  ?  To  talk  with 
them  there,  and  live  with  them,  and  question  them,  would 
be  happiness  unspeakable.  Certainly  there  they  will  not  λ 
put  one  to  death  for  that ;  they  are  far  happier  in  all  ]  Λ 
things  than  we  of  this  world,  and  they  are  immortal  for 7 
evermore, — if  what  some  say  is  true. 

XXXIII.  And  you  too,  my  judges,  must  think  of 
death  with  hope,  and  remember  this  at  least  is  true,  that 
no  evil  can  come  to  a  good  man  in  life  or  death,  and  that  4 1  D 
he  is  not  forgotten  of  God ;  what  has  come  to  me  now 


has  not  come  by  chance,  but  it  is  clear  to  me  that  it  was 
better  for  me  to  die  andfHe^|uit  of  troubleT~~That  Iswhv 
the  signal  never  came  to  turn  me  back,  and  I  cannot  say  ^ 
that  I  am  altogether  angry  with  my  accusers  and  those 
who  have  condemned  me.  Yet  it  was  not  with  that 
intention  that  they  condemned  me  and  accused  me ;  they 
meant,  tp  dn  mp  harm,  and  they  are  to  bp  blamed  for  that.  4 1  E 
This  much,  however,  I  will  ask  of  them.  When  my 


d  o 


124 


ΑΠΟΛΟΓΙΑ 


ήβήσωσι,  τιμωρήσασθε,  ω  άνδρες,  ταυτά  ταντα  λνπονντε* ;, 
<Χ7 rep  εγώ  νμας  ελνπονν,  εάν  νμιν  δοκωσιν  ή  χρημάτων  η 
άλλον  τον  πρότερον  επιμελείσθαι  η  αρετής,  και  εάν  δοκωσί 
τι  είναι  μηδέν  οντες,  ονειδίζετε  αντοίς,  ώσπερ  εγώ  νμιν,  ότι 
ονκ  επιμελοννται  ων  δει,  καί,  οίονταί  τι  είναι  οντες  ονδενδς 
Α  άξιοι,  καί  εάν  ταντα  ττοιήτε,  δίκαια  |  πεπονθως  εγώ  εσομαι 
νφί  νμων  αυτός  τε  καί  οι  νιείς. 

άλλα  γάρ  ήδη  ώρα  άπιεναι,  εμοί  μεν  άποθανονμενω,  νμιν 
δε  βιωσομενοις'  όπότεροι  δε  ημών  έρχονται  επί  άμεινον 
πράγμα,  άδηλον  παντί  πλήν  ή  τω  #εω. 


THE  APOLOGY 


125 


sons  come  of  age,  sirs,  will  you  reprove  them  and  trouble 
them  as  I  troubled  you,  if  you  think  they  care  for 
money  or  anything  else  more  than  righteousness  ?  And  if 
they  seem  to  be  something  when  they  are  really  nothing, 
reproach  them  as  I  reproached  you  for  not  seeking  what 
they  need,  and  for  thinking  they  are  somewhat  when  they 
are  worth  nothing.  And  if  you  do  this,  we  shall  have  42  A 
received  justice  at  your  hands,  my  sons  and  I. 

But  now  it  is  time  for  us  to  go,  I  to  death,  and  you  to 
life ;  and  which  of  us  goes  to  the  better  state  is  known  to 
none  but  God. 


CRITO 


139 

Listen  to  me,  Socrates,  I  entreat  you,  and  do  not  say 
No. 

VI.  Soc.  My  dear  Crito,  I  must  thank  you  for  your  46 
eagerness,  if  your  cause  is  righteous  ;  but  if  not,  the  greater 
your  zeal,  the  greater  the  harm  that  it  may  cause.  So  we  must 
look  carefully  and  think  whether  we  ought  to  do  this  or  not. 

All  my  life,  not  now  only,  I  have  been  a  man  who  can  obey 
no  friend  but  reason,  the  reason  that  seems  best  to  me  after  I 
have  thought  the  matter  out.  And  the  reasons  I  used  before 
I  cannot  give  up  now,  because  this  has  befallen  me  ;  they 
seem  much  the  same  to  me  still ;  I  honour  and  reverence 
what  I  honoured  and  reverenced  before  ;  and  if  we  have  46  C 
nothing  better  to  bring  forward  now,  you  may  be  sure 
I  shall  never  give  you  my  consent,  no,  not  if  the  power  of 
the  majority  were  to  scare  us,  like  children,  with  worse 
bogies  than  they  have  shown  us  already, — chains  and  death, 
and  lo'ss  of  property.  Now  what  would  be  the  best  way  of 
examining  the  question  ?  Perhaps  if  we  take  up  first  the 
argument  you  brought  forward  about  what  people  think,  and 
ask  whether  it  was  right  or  not  to  say,  as  I  always  did,  that 
we  ought  to  attend  to  some  opinions,  and  not  to  others  ;  or  46  D 
that  it  was  well  enough  to  say  so  before  I  had  to  die,  but 
now  it  has  become  perfectly  plain  that  it  was  only  said 
for  the  sake  of  talk,  and  that  speaking  seriously  it  was 
nothing  but  childish  nonsense.  I  want  very  much  to 
examine  this  argument  with  you,  dear  Crito,  and  see 
whether  it  looks  at  all  different  to  me  now  that  I  am  in 
this  position,  or  just  the  same,  and  whether  we  are  to  give 
it  up  or  obey  it.  It  was  repeatedly  said,  I  think,  by  those 
who  thought  they  had  something  to  say,  just  as  I  said  a 
little  while  ago,  that  of  all  the  opinions  men  hold,  some 
ought  to  be  valued  highly  and  some  ought  not.  Now  tell  46  E 
me,  Crito,  do  you  not  think  that  that  was  right  ?  You, 


140 


ΚΡΙΤΏΝ 


σοι  λεγεσθαί ;  συ  yap,  όσα  ye  τάνθρωπεια,  έκτος  el  τον 
47  A  μεΧΧειν  άποθνησκειν  [  ανριον,  καί  ονκ  αν  σε  παρακρονοι  η 
παρούσα  ξυμφορά.  σκό πει  δη'  ονχ  ικανως  δοκεΐ  σοι 

Χεγεσθαι,  δτι  ου  πάσας  χρη  τάς  δόξας  των  ά νθρωπων 
τιμάν,  άλλα  τάς  μεν,  τάς  δ ’  ον ;  τι  φης ;  ταντα  ονχί 
καλώς  λέγεται ; 

ΚΡ.  Καλώς. 

2$Ω.  Ονκονν  τάς  μεν  χρηστάς  τιμάν,  τάς  δε  πονηράς 
μη  ; 

ΚΡ.  Nat. 

^Ω.  Χρηστοί  δε  ονχ  at  των  φρονίμων,  πονηροί  δε  at 
των  αφρόνων ; 

ΚΡ.  Πώς  δ’  ον  ; 

All.  ^Ω.  Φερε  δη,  7τώς  αυ  τά  τοιαντα  ελεγετο; 
47  Β  yυμvaζόμevoς  άνηρ  και  τοντο  πράττων  πότepov  παντός 
άνδρος  επαινώ  καί,  ι/'ογω  τον  νουν  προσέχει,  η  ενός  μόνον 
εκείνον,  ος  αν  τνγχάνη  ιατρός  η  παι δοτρίβης  ων  ; 

ΚΡ.  Ένδς  μόνον. 

2Ω.  Ονκονν  φοβεΐσθαι  χρη  τους  ψόγους  και  άσπάζε- 
σθαι  τους  επαίνους  τονς  τον  ενός  εκείνον,  αλλά  μη  τονς  των 
πολλών. 

ΚΡ.  ΑηΧα  δη. 

2Ω.  Ύαντη  άρα  αντω  πρακτέον  καί  yvμvaστέov  καί 
εδεστέον  γε  καί  ποτέον ,  η  αν  τω  ενί  δοκη  τω  επιστάτη  καί 
επαίοντι,  μάλλον  η  η  ξνμπασι  τοΐς  άλλοις. 

ΚΡ.  Έστι  ταντα. 

2Λ2.  Κιεν.  απεινησας  οε  τω  ενι  και  ατιμασας  αντον 
47  Οτην  δόξαν  και  τονς  επαίνους,  τιμησας  δε  τονς  των  πολλών 
λόγους  καί  μηδέν  επα ιόντων,  άρα  ουδεν  κακόν  πείσεται ; 

ΚΡ.  Πώς  γάρ  ου  ; 


CRITO 


141 

you  see,  are,  humanly  speaking,  in  no  danger  of  dying 
to-morrow,  and  there  is  no  impending  fate  to  lead  you  47  A 
astray.  Ask  yourself  then  and  answer  :  do  you  not  take  it 
to  be  established  that  we  ought  not  to  value  all  the  opinions 
of  men  but  only  some  ?  What  do  you  say  ?  Is  that 
not  right  ? 

Cr.  Yes,  quite  right. 

Soc.  We  ought  to  value  the  good  and  not  the  bad  ? 

Cr.  Yes. 

Soc.  The  opinions  of  sensible  men  are  good,  and  the 
opinions  of  foolish  men  are  bad  ? 

Cr.  Of  course. 

VII.  Soc.  Well  now,  what  used  we  to  say  about  cases 
of  this  kind?  If  a  man  is  learning  gymnastics,  does 47  B 
he  pay  attention  to  every  one’s  approval  and  disapproval 
and  every  one’s  opinion,  or  to  one  man  and  one  man  alone, 
his  doctor  or  his  trainer  ? 

Cr.  To  one  man,  and  one  man  alone. 

Soc.  Then  he  ought  to  dread  the  blame  and  rejoice  in 
the  praise  of  that  one  man,  and  not  care  about  the 
majority  ? 

Cr.  Certainly  he  ought. 

Soc.  So  he  ought  to  act  and  perform  his  exercises,  and 
eat  and  drink  just  as  is  thought  right  by  the  one  man  who 
can  teach  him  and  who  knows,  rather  than  as  all  the 
others  think  ? 

Cr.  Yes,  that  is  so. 

Soc.  Very  good.  And  if  he  disobeys  the  one  and  47  C 
disregards  his  opinion  and  his  approval,  while  he  values 
the  advice  of  the  majority,  who  know  nothing  at  all 
about  it, — if  he  does  this,  will  he  be  free  from  harm  ? 

Cr.  How  could  he  be  ? 


142 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


rp'  S’  v  \  \  ^  \  "  /  \> 

-2,Ω.  It  o  εστι  το  κακόν  τοντο  ;  και  ττοι  τείνει,  και  εις 
τι  των  τον  άττειθονντος  ; 

ΚΡ.  Δηλον  οτι  ας  το  σώμα’  τοντο  yap  διόλλνσι. 

2Ω.  Καλώς  λεγεις.  ονκονν  και  τάλλα,  ώ  Κριτών , 
όντως,  ίνα  μη  πάντα  διίωμεν ,  και  δή  και  περί  των  δίκαιων 
καί,  άδικων  καί  αισχρών  καί  καλών  καί  άγαμων  καί  κακών, 

47  D  περί  ών  νυν  ή  βονλη  ημίν  εστιν ;  πότερον  τη  των  ί τολλών 
οος^  δει  ήρας  επεσσαι  και  φορεισυαι  αντην,  η  τη  τον  ενός, 
ει  τις  εστιν  επαΐων,  ον  δει  καί  αισχννεσθαι  και  φοβείσθαι 
μάλλον  η  ξνμπαντας  τους  άλλους ;  ω  εί  ρή  άκολονθησομεν, 
δια φθερονμεν  εκείνο  καί  λωβησόμεθα,  ο  τω  μεν  δικαίω 
ρελτιον  εγιγνετο,  τω  δε  αδικώ  αττωλλυτο.  η  ονοεν  εστι 
τοντο  ; 

ΚΡ.  Οιραι  εγωγε,  ώ  ^ώκρατες. 

VIII.  5Ω.  Φερε  δ->7»  εάν  το  υπό  του  υγιεινού  ρέν 
βελτιον  γιγνορενον,  υπό  του  νοσώδους  δε  διαφθειρόμενον 
διολεσωμεν  πειθόμενοι  μη  τη  των  επα ιόντων  δό£η,  αρα 

47  Ε  βιωτον  ημίν  εστιν  διεφθαρμενον  αΰτοΰ ;  εστι  δε'  7του  τούτο 

τό  σώμα *  r)  ονχί ; 

ΚΡ.  Ναι. 

2Ω·  Άρ’  ουν  βιωτον  ημίν  εστιν  μετά  μοχθηροί)  καί 
διεφθαρμενον  σώματος ; 

ΚΡ.  Ουδαρώς. 

2;Ω.  Άλλα  ρετ’  εκείνον  αρ  ημίν  βιωτον  διεφθαρμενον, 
ω  το  άδικον  μεν  λωβάται,  το  δε  δίκαιον  δνίνησιν ;  17  φαυ- 
λ()τερον  ήγ ονμεθα  είναι  τον  σώματος  εκείνο,  ο  τι  ποτ’  εστι 

48  Α  των  |  ημετερων,  περί  δ  η  τε  αδικία  καί  η  δικαιοσννη  εστιν  ; 

ΚΡ.  Ουδαρώς. 


CRITO 


J43 

Soc.  And  what  will  this  harm  be  ?  Where  will  it  end  ? 

How  will  it  injure  the  man  who  disobeys  ? 

Cr.  It  will  injure  his  body  of  course :  it  means  the 
ruin  of  that. 

Soc.  Quite  right.  And  is  it  not  the  same  with  every¬ 
thing  else  too,  Crito, — not  to  go  into  details, — above  all 
with  justice  and  injustice,  ugliness  and  beauty,  good  and 
evil,  with  which  we  are  now  concerned?  Ought  we47l) 
to  follow  the  voice  of  the  many,  and  fear  it,  or  the 
voice  of  the  one,  if  there  is  one  who  knows,  one  whom 
we  ought  to  reverence  and  fear  more  than  all  the 
rest?  For  if  we  will  not  follow  him,  we  shall  ruin 
and  maim  that  part  which  is  strengthened  in  the  just  man 
and  perishes  in  the  unjust.  Or  is  there  nothing  of  the 
kind  ? 

Cr.  Ah,  but  I  believe  there  is,  Socrates. 

VIII.  Soc.  Well,  if  we  destroy  what  is  strengthened  by 
wholesome  treatment  and  ruined  by  unwholesome,  when  we 
will  not  listen  to  the  words  of  those  who  understand,  can 
we  live  any  longer  when  this  thing  is  destroyed?  What 47  E 
I  am  speaking  of  is  the  body,  is  it  not  ? 

Cr.  Yes. 

Soc.  Is  it  possible,  I  ask,  for  us  to  live  when  the  body 
is  ruined  and  destroyed  ? 

Cr.  No,  quite  impossible. 

Soc.  And  could  we  live  with  that  in  us  destroyed  which 
is  maimed  by  wickedness  and  strengthened  by  righteous¬ 
ness  ?  Or  are  we  to  think  more  meanly  of  it  than  of  the 
body,  that  thing  in  us,  whatever  it  is,  which  has  to  do  48  A 
with  right  and  wrong  ? 

Cr.  Surely  not. 


1 44 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


5Ω.  Άλλα  τιμιωτερον ; 

ΚΡ.  Πολύ  ye. 

2Ω.  Ονκ  άρα,  ω  βέλτιστε,  πάνν  ημΐν  οντω  φροντιστεον , 
τί  ερονσιν  οί  7 τολλοί  ημάς,  άλλ’  6  τι  6  επαΐων  περί  των 
δικαίων  καί  αδίκων,  δ  εις,  και  αντη  η  αλήθεια.  ώστε 
πρώτον  μεν  ταντη  ονκ  όρθως  είσηγεΐ,  είσηγονμενος  της  των 
πολλών  δόζης  δεΐν  ημάς  φροντίζειν  περί  των  δικαίων  και 
καλών  και  αγαθών  και  των  εναντίων.  άλλα  μεν  δη,  φαίη 
γ’  αν  τις,  οι  οι  τε  εισιν  ημάς  οι  πολλοί  άποκτινννναι. 

48  Β  ΚΡ.  Αήλ  α  δη  και  ταντα’  φαίη  γάρ  αν,  ω  ΐ&ωκρατες. 

2Ω.  ’ Αληθη  λεγεις.  αλλ\  ω  θανμάσιε,  οντός  τε  δ 
λόγος,  δν  διεληλνθαμεν,  εμοιγε  δοκεί  ετι  όμοιος  είναι  και 
πρότερον  και  τόνδε  αν  σκοπεί,  εί  ετι  μενει  ημΐν  η  ον,  οτι 
ον  το  ζην  περί  πλείστον  ποιητεον,  άλλα  τό  εν  ζην. 

ΚΡ.  Άλλα  μενει. 

ΓΠ  V  'S'  '  \  Λ  \  ^  3/3 

2ιΩ.  Ιο  οε  εν  και  καλώς  και  οικαιως  οτι  ταντον  εστιν, 


μενει  η  ον  μενει; 


ΚΡ.  Μενει. 

IX.  ^Ω.  Ονκονν  εκ  των  δμολογονμενων  τοντο  σκεπ- 
τεον,  7 τότερον  δίκαιον  εμε  ένθενδε  πειράσθαι  εζιεναι  μη 
4»  C  άφιεντων  ’ Αθηναίων ,  η  ον  δίκαιον’  και  εάν  μεν  φαίνηται1 
δίκαιον,  πειρωμεθα,  εί  δε  μό],  εωμεν.  ας  δε  σν  λεγεις  τάς 
σκεφεις  περί  τε  άναλωσεως  χρημάτων  και  δόζης  και  παίδων 
τροφής,  μη  ώς  αληθώς  ταντα,  ω  Κριτών,  σκεμματα  η  των 
ραδίως  άποκτινννντων  και  άναβι ωσκομενων  γ *  άν,  εί  οιοί  τ 
ησαν,  ονδενί  ζνν  νω,  τοντων  των  πολλών,  ημΐν  δ\  επειδή 
δ  λογος  όντως  αίρει,  μη  ονδεν  άλλο  σκεπτεον  η  η  όπερ  ννν 
δη  ελεγομεν,  πότερον  δίκαια  πράζομεν  και  χρήματα  ^ 
48  D  τελουντες  τοντοις  τοΐς  εμε  ενθενδε  εζάζονσιν  και  χάριτας,  ι 


CRITO 


H5 


Soc.  Shall  we  think  more  highly  of  it  ? 

Cr.  Far  more  highly. 

Soc.  Then,  dear  friend,  if  that  is  so,  we  have  not,  after 
all,  to  think  so  much  of  what  the  many  will  say  about  us  ; 
but  rather  of  what  he  will  say  who  knows  what  is  right 
and  what  is  wrong,  he,  and  the  truth  itself.  So  that  you 
are  wrong  in  the  first  place,  in  suggesting  that  we  ought 
to  consider  the  opinion  of  the  majority  about  justice  and 
beauty  and  goodness.  But  then,  you  see,  it  might  be  said 
the  majority  can  put  us  to  death. 

Cr.  Yes,  certainly,  Socrates,  it  might  very  well  be  said.  48  B 

Soc.  It  might  indeed.  But,  my  dear  friend,  this 
argument  that  we  have  gone  over  looks  to  me  just  as  it 
did  before.  And  now  turn  to  this  other  one  and  see  if 
it  still  holds  true  for  us  or  not :  I  mean  the  doctrine  that 
it  is  not  mere  life,  but  the  good  life,  that  we  ought  to 
value  most. 

Cr.  Yes,  it  still  holds  true. 

Soc.  And  that  the  good  life  is  the  same  as  the  life  of 
beauty  and  the  life  of  righteousness,  does  that  hold  true  or 
does  it  not  ? 

Cr.  It  does. 

IX.  Soc.  Well,  it  follows  from  our  admissions  that  what 
we  have  to  consider  is  whether  it  is  right  or  not  for  me  to 
try  to  get  away  when  Athens  has  not  set  me  free;  and  if  it  48  C 
seems  right,  let  us  make  the  attempt,  and  if  not,  let  us  leave 
it  alone.  As  for  those  considerations  you  spoke  of,  about 
expense  and  reputation  and  the  education  of  my  sons, 
perhaps,  Crito,  they  should  really  be  left  to  those  who 
would  put  others  to  death  without  hesitation  and  bring 
them  to  life  again, — if  they  could, — without  a  thought ; 
and  these  are  our  majority.  But  for  us,  I  think,  since 
the  argument  will  have  it  so,  the  only  question  is  the  one 
we  spoke  of  just  now,  whether  it  would  be  right  in  us  to 
pay  money  and  grant  favours  to  these  men  who  are  to  take  48  D 
me  away, — right  in  you  to  take  me,  and  right  in  me  to 

L 


\ 


146 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


V  i  \  5  >  /  /  \  >  £  / 

καί  αυτοί  εξαγοντες  τε  και  εξαγόμενοί,  ??  τη  αλησεία  αόίκη- 
σομεν  πάντα  ταντα  ποίουντες *  καν  φαίνωμεθα  άδικα 
αυτά  εργαζόμενοί,  μη  ου  δέη  υπολογίζεσθαί  ουτ  εί 
άποθνησκενν  δεΐ  παραμένοντας  και  ησυχίαν  άγοντας,  ούτε 
άλλο  δτίουν  πάσχαν  προ  του  άδικεΐν. 

ΚΡ.  Καλώς  μέν  μοί  δοκέ ΐς  λεγειν,  ώ  ^ άκρατες ,  δρα  δε 
τι  δρωμεν. 

2;Ω.  ^κοπώρεν,  ώ  αγαθέ,  κοινή,  και  εί  ττη  έχεις  άντιλεγειν 
εροΰ  λε'γοντος,  αντίλεγε,  και  σοι  πείσομ αι*  εί  δε  μη, 

48  Κ  παΰσαί  ηδη,  ώ  μακάριε,  πολλάκίς  μοί  λέγων  τον  αυτόν  λόγον, 

ως  χρη  ενθένδε  άκδντων  Αθηναίων  εμέ  άπιεναι*  ως  εγώ 
περί  πολλοί)  ποιούμαι  πεΐσαί  σε,  αλλά  ρί)  άκοντος  ταΰτα 
πράττε ιν  δρα  δε  δί)  τίρ  σκέψεως  την  αρχήν,  εάν  σοι 

49  Α.  ίκανώς  λέγη'ται,  καί  πει ρώ  άποκρίνεσθ αι  |  το  ερωτώρενον, 

η  αν  μάλιστα  οΐη. 

ΚΡ.  ’Αλλά  πειράσομ αι. 

X.  3Ω.  ΟυδενΙ  τρόπω  φαμέν  έκόντας  άδίκητέον 
είναι,  η  τινί  ρεν  άδίκητέον  τρόπω,  τι νί  δε  ου ;  η  ουδαμως  τό 
γε  άδικεΐν  ούτε  αγαθόν  ούτε  καλόν,  ώς  πολλάκίς  ημΐν  καί 
εν  τω  έμπροσθεν  χρόνω  ωμολογηθη ;  η  πάσαι  r/piv 
εκεΐναι  αί  πρόσθεν  όμολογίαι  εν  ταΐσδε  ταΐς  όλίγαις 
ημέραις  εκκεχυμέν αί  εΐσίν,  καί  πάλαι,  ώ  Κριτών,  άρα 
τηλίκοίδε  άνδρες  προς  άλληλους  σπουδή  δίαλεγόμενοί 

49  Β  ελάθομεν  ημάς  αυτους  παίδων  ουδέν  διαφέροντες  ;  η  παντός 
μάλλον  ούτως  έχει  ώσπερ  τότε  ελέγετο  ημΐν *  είτε  φασιν  οι 
πολλοί  είτε  ρ^,  καί  είτε  δεΐ  ^ράς  ετι  τώνδε  χαλεπωτερα 
πάσχείν  είτε  καί  πραότερα,  όμως  τό  γε  άδικεΐν  τω 


CRITO 


Η  7 

let  myself  be  taken, — or  whether  we  should  do  wrong  if  we 
did  anything  of  the  kind  :  and  if  it  seems  wrong,  then  we 
ought  not, — ought  we  ? — to  take  into  account  whether  we 
must  die  if  we  stay  quietly  here,  or  suffer  anything  else 
whatever  rather  than  do  wrong. 

Cr.  I  must  say  that  sounds  right,  Socrates.  But  think 
what  we  are  to  do. 

Soc.  Let  us  think  about  it  together,  my  friend,  and 
if  you  have  anything  to  say  in  answer  to  me,  say  it ;  and  I 
will  listen  to  you.  But  if  not,  then,  dear  good  Crito,  you  48  E 
must  once  for  all  give  up  telling  me  the  same  thing  over  and 
over  again, — how  I  ought  to  come  away  from  here  against 
the  will  of  Athens.  I  would  give  a  great  deal  to  have 
you  on  my  side,  and  not  to  go  against  your  wish.  So 
will  you  examine  the  first  step  in  the  inquiry,  to  see  if 
you  consider  it  established,  and  then  try  to  answer  what  1 49  A 
ask  you,  as  you  may  think  best. 

Cr.  Well,  I  will  try. 

X.  Soc.  Do  we  hold  that  we  ought  never  in  any  way  to 
do  wrong  willingly,  or  that  we  may  do  wrong  in  one  way 
though  not  in  another  ?  Or  that  under  no  circumstances 
can  wrong-doing  be  good  and  beautiful,  as  we  concluded 
over  and  over  again  in  former  times  ?  Can  it  be  that  all 
those  conclusions  have  been  given  up  and  tossed  aside  in 
these  few  days  ?  And  that  you  and  I,  Crito,  old  men  as 
we  are,  have  been  talking  earnestly  together  all  this  while 
and  never  noticed  that  we  were  no  better  than  children  ?  49  B 
Or  is  it  most  assuredly  the  case,  even  as  we  used  to  say  in 
the  old  days,  that  whether  the  many  agree  or  not,  and 
whether  our  fate  is  to  be  heavier  than  it  is  or  lighter, 
whatever  happens,  none  the  less,  in  any  and  every  way 


i48 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


( ιδικουντι  καί  κακόν  καί  a ίσχρδν  τυγχάνει  δν  παντι  τρόπω ; 

ι  \  *  V 

φαμζν  η  ον  ; 

ΚΡ.  Φαρέν. 

5Ω.  Οΰδαρώς  άρα  δει  άδικε ιν. 

ΚΡ.  Ού  δί}τα. 

2Ω.  Ουδέ  άδι κουρενον  άρα  άνταδικεΐν,  ως  οί  πολλοί 
οίονται,  επειδή  γε  οΰδαρώς  δει  άδικεΐν. 

49  C  ΚΡ.  Ου  φαίνεται. 

5Ω.  Τι  δε  δ>7 ;  κακουργειν  δει,  ώ  Κριτών,  τ)  ου; 

ΚΡ.  Ου  δει  δήπου,  ώ  ^ώκρατες. 

]£Ω.  Τι  δε;  άντικακουργεΐν  κακώς  πάσχοντα,  ως  οί 
πολλοί  φασιν,  δίκαιον  ^  ου  δίκαιον  ; 

ΚΡ.  Οΰδαρ,ώς. 

2|Ω.  Τδ  γάρ  που  κακώς  ποιεΐν  ανθρώπους  του  άδικεΐν 
ουδέν  διαφέρει. 

ΚΡ.  ’Αληθή  λέγεις. 

3Ω.  Ούτε  άρα  άνταδικεΐν  δει  ούτε  κακώς  ποιεΐν  οΰδένα 
ανθρώπων ,  οΰδ’  αν  ότιουν  πάσχη  ΰπ’  αυτών,  καί  ορα,  ώ 
Κριτών,  ταυτα  καθομολογών,  όπως  ρί)  παρά  δο£αν 
49  D  δμολογής.  οιδα  γάρ  οτι  ολιγοις  τισί  ταυτα  καί  δοκεΐ  και 
οοςει.  οις  ουν  ουτω  οεοοκται  και  οις  ρή,  τουτοις  ουκ  εστι 
κοινή  βουλή ,  άλλά  ανάγκη  τουτους  άλλήλων  καταφρονεΐν, 
δρώντας  τα  άλλήλων  βουλεύματα,  σκοπεί  δή  ουν  καί  σ-υ 
ευ  ράλα  ποτερον  κοινωνεΐς  καί  £υνδοκεΐ  σοι  καί  άρχώμεθ α 
εντεύθεν  βουλευόμενοι,  ως  ουδέποτε  ορθως  εχοντος  ούτε 
του  άδικεΐν  ούτε  του  άνταδικεΐν  ούτε  κακώς  πάσχοντα 
άμυνεσθαι  άντιδρώντα  κακώς,  τ)  άφιστασαι  καί  ου  κοινωνεΐς 
49  Ε  τ^ς  άρχής'  έροί  ρέν  γάρ  καί  πάλαι  ουτω  και  νυν  ετι  δοκεΐ, 


CRITO 


149 

wrong-doing  is  evil  and  shameful  to  the  doer  ?  Do  we 
agree  or  not  ? 

Cr.  We  do. 

Soc.  Then  we  ought  never  to  do  wrong  ? 

Cr.  No,  we  ought  not. 

Soc.  Not  even  in  return  for  being  wronged  ouselves,  as 
most  people  believe — for  we  ought  not  to  do  wrong  at  all. 

Cr.  It  appears  not.  49  C 

Soc.  And  now,  tell  me,  Crito,  ought  we  to  do  harm  or 
not  ? 

Cr.  Certainly  not,  my  friend. 

Soc.  Even  to  return  harm  for  harm,  can  that  be  just, 
as  most  people  say  it  is,  or  not  ? 

Cr.  No,  it  is  not  just  at  all. 

Soc.  Yes,  I  feel  that  to  do  harm  to  people  cannot  be 
different  from  doing  wrong. 

Cr.  That  is  true. 

Soc.  Well  then,  we  ought  never  to  return  evil  for  evil 
and  never  do  harm  to  any  man  at  all,  whatever  we  may 
suffer  at  his  hands.  And,  Crito,  you  must  be  careful  in 
agreeing  to  this,  not  to  say  that  you  agree  unless  you  really 
do.  For  I  know  that  there  are  only  a  few  men  who  hold  49  D 
this  belief,  or  ever  will  hold  it.  And  there  can  be  no 
common  ground  between  those  who  do  and  those  who  do 
not :  each  side  must  despise  the  other  when  they  see  what 
they  believe.  Therefore  look,  and  look  carefully,  to  see 
if  you  stand  on  the  same  ground  as  I,  and  hold  the  same 
opinion,  and  then  we  may  begin  our  inquiry  with  this 
belief  that  it  can  never  be  a  good  thing  to  do  wrong,  not 
even  in  revenge,  nor  to  return  evil  for  evil  in  self-defence. 

Or  will  you  stand  aloof  and  refuse  to  start  from  this  ? 

For  my  part,  I  have  held  this  belief  for  many  years,  49  E 


i5o 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


σοι  δέ  εί  πη  άλλη  δεδοκται,  λεγε  και  δίδασκε,  εί  δ’ 
εμμένεις  τοις  πρόσθε,  το  μετά  τοντο  ακούε. 

ΚΡ.  Άλλ’  εμμένω  τε  και  ^υνδοκεΐ  μοι*  άλλα  λεγε. 

2Ω.  Λεγ  ω  δή  αυ  τδ  μετά  τοντο ,  μάλλον  δ’  ερωτώ· 
πότερον  α  αν  τις  ό  μολογη  ση  τω  δίκαια  οντα  ποιητέον  η 
εξαπατητέον ; 

ΚΡ.  ΓΙοι^τε'ον. 

XI.  2$Ω.  Έκ  τούτων  δτ)  αθρει.  ανιόντες  ένθένδε 
$  Ο  Α.  ημείς  μη  πείσαντες  την  πόλιν  |  πότερον  κακώς  τινας 
ποιονμεν ,  και  ταυτα  ους  ήκιστα  δει,  τ)  ον  ;  και  έμμένομεν 
οις  ωμολογησ αμεν  δικαίοις  ονσιν  η  ον  ; 

ΚΡ.  Ο νκ  εχω ,  ώ  ^ώκρατες,  άποκρίνασθαι  προς  ο 
έρωτας'  ον  γαρ  εννοώ. 

^Ω.  Άλλ’  ωδε  σκοπεί.  εί  μέλλονσιν  ημΐν  έν^ε'νδε 
είτε  αποοιόρασκειν,  ειϋ  όπως  όει  ονομασαι  τοντο,  ελυοντες 
οι  νόμοι  και  τδ  κοινόν  της  πόλεως  επιστάντες  εροιντο· 
‘  είπε'  μοι,  ω  5 ωκρατες ,  τι  εν  νω  εχεις  ποιεΐν  ;  άλλο  τι  τ) 
50  Βτουτω  τω  εργω,  ω  επιχειρείς,  δια  νοεί  τους  τε  νόμονς  ημάς 
απολέσαι  και  ζνμπασαν  την  πόλιν  τδ  σδν  μέρος ;  τ?  δοκεΐ 
σοι  οιδν  τε  ετι  εκείνην  την  πόλιν  είναι  και  μτ)  άνατετράφθαι, 
εν  η  αι  γενόμεναι  δικαι  μηδέν  ισχνονσιν,  άλλα  υπδ  ιδιωτών 
άκυροι  τε  γίγνονται  καί  διαφθείρονται ;  ’  τι  ερονμεν,  ω 
Κριτών,  προς  ταντα  καί  άλλα  τοιαυτα ;  πολλά  γαρ  αν  τις 
εχοι ,  άλλως  τε  καί  ρητωρ,  είπεΐν  νπέρ  τουτου  του  νόμον 
απολλνμένον ,  ός  τάς  δικας  τας  δικασθείσας  προστάττε ι 
κυρίας  είναι,  τ)  ερονμεν  προς  αντονς,  6 τι  ηδίκει  γαρ  ημάς 

50  Οη  πόλις  καί  ουκ  όρθως  την  δίκην  έκρινεν ;  ταυτα  η  τί 
ερονμεν ;  \  ~~ 


CRITO 


151 

and  I  hold  it  still,  but  if  you  have  come  to  think  other¬ 
wise,  tell  me  and  teach  me.  Only,  if  you  hold  to  our 
old  views,  you  must  listen  to  what  follows. 

Cr.  But  I  do  hold  to  them,  and  I  agree  with  you. 

Say  on. 

Soc.  I  say  then — or  rather  I  ask — are  we  to  do  what 
we  have  admitted  to  be  right,  or  are  we  to  play  false  ? 

Cr.  We  are  to  do  what  is  right. 

XI.  Soc.  Bear  that  in  mind  now,  and  see  what  you 
think  of  this.  If  we  go  without  the  State’s  consent,  shall  5°  A 
we  or  shall  we  not  do  harm,  and  that  to  the  last  people  who 
should  be  harmed  ?  And  shall  we  hold  to  what  we  have 
admitted  to  be  right, or  shall  we  not? 

Cr.  I  cannot  answer  your  question,  Socrates,  for  I  do 
not  understand  it. 

Soc.  Then  let  me  put  it  like  this.  Suppose  we  meant 
to  run  away — or  whatever  one  ought  to  call  it — and 
suppose  the  laws  and  the  State  were  to  come  and  stand 
over  us  and  ask  me,  “  Tell  us,  Socrates,  what  is  it  you 
mean  to  do  ?  Nothing  more  nor  less  than  to  overthrow  us,  50  B 
by  this  attempt  of  yours, — to  overthrow  the  laws  and  the 
whole  commonwealth  so  far  as  in  you  lies.  Do  you 
imagine  that  a  city  can  stand  and  not  be  overthrown,  when 
the  decisions  of  the  judges  have  no  power,  when  they  are 
made  of  no  effect  and  destroyed  by  private  persons  ?  ” 

What  are  we  to  answer,  Crito,  to  such  words  as  these  ? 

Much  could  be  said,  especially  by  an  orator,  in  defence  of 
this  dying  law,  the  law  that  the  judges’  decision  must  be 
final.  Are  we  to  answer,  “  Oh,  but  the  State  has  wronged  5°  ^ 
us,  and  the  decision  it  gave  was  unjust  ?  ”  Shall  we  say 
this,  or  what  shall  we  say  ? 


152 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


ΚΡ.  Ταυτα  νη  Δία,  ώ  Σωκρατες. 

XII.  ^Ω·  Τι  ow,  αν  είπωσιν  οί  νόμοι'  ‘  ω  %ωκρατες, 
η  και  ταυτα  ωμολόγητο  η  μ  tv  τε  και  σοί,  ή  ερρενειν  ταίς 
δίκαις  αι?  αν  97  πάλι?  δικάζη ;  *  εί  ούν  αυτών  θα νμάζοιμεν 
λεγοντων,  ίσως  αν  είποιεν  δτι  *  ω  ^ωκρατες,  ρή  θαύμαζε  τα 
λεγόμενα,  άλλ’  άποκρίνου,  επειδή  και  είω#α?  χρησθ αι  τω 

50  Σ)  έρωταν  τε  και  άποκρίνεσθαι.  φέρε  γ άρ,  τί  εγκαλων  ημίν 
και  τή  πόλει  επιχειρείς  ημάς  άπολλύνα ι  ;  ού  πρώτον  ρεν 
σε  εγεννησαμεν  ημείς,  και  δι’  ημών  ελάμβανεν  την  μητέρα 
σου  6  πατήρ  και  εφυτευσέν  σε ;  φράσον  ούν  τούτοι?  ημών > 
τοι?  νόμοις  τοΐ?  περί  του?  γάρου?,  μέμφει  τι  ώ?  ου  καλώς 
εχουσιν ;  *  ού  μέμφομα ι,  φαίην  αν.  ‘  άλλα  τοΐ?  περί  την 
τον  γενομένου  τροφήν  τε  καί  παιδείαν,  εν  η  Tcai  συ  επαιδευ 
ή  °ύ  καλώ?  προσεταττον  ημών  οί  επί  τούτοι?  τεταγ- 
ρενοι  νόμοι,  παραγγέλλοντες  τω  πατρί  τω  σω  σε  εν 
μουσική  καί  -γυμναστική  παιδεύειν ;  ’  καλώ?,  φαίην  αν* 

50  Ε  ‘είεν.  επειδή  δε  εγενου  τε  καί  εξετράφης  καί  επαιδευθης, 

έχοις  αν  είπεΐν  πρώτον  μεν  ως  ούχί  ημέτερος  ησθα  καί 
έκγονος  καί  δούλο?,  αυτός  τε  καί  οί  σοί  πρόγονοι ;  καί  εί  τοΰθ * 
ούτως  έχει,  αρ ’  ε£  ίσου  οΐει  είναι  σοί  το  δίκαιον  καί  ημίν, 
καί  άττ  αν  ημείς  σε  επιχειρωμεν  ποιείν ,  καί  σοί  ταυτα 
άντιποιείν  οΐει  δίκαιον  είναι ;  ή  προ?  ρεν  άρα  σοι  τον  πατέρα 
ουκ  εξ  ίσου  ην  το  δίκαιον  καί  προ?  τον  δεσποτών,  εί  σοι  ων 
ετυγχανεν,  ώστε,  απερ  πάσχοις,  ταυτα  καί  άντιποιείν, — 

5 1  Α  ούτε  κακώς  άκονοντα  αντίλεγε ιν  ούτε  τυπτορενον  |  άντιτυ- 

πτειν  ούτε  άλλα  τοιαύτα  πολλά'  προς  δε  τήν  πατρίδα 
άρα  καί  τους  νόμους  εσται  σοι ;  ώστε ,  εάν  σε  επιχειρωμεν 
ημείς  άπολλύνα ι  δίκαιον  ηγούμενοι  είναι,  καί  συ  δε  ημάς 
τους  νόμους  καί  την  πατρίδα  καθ'  όσον  δυνασαι  επιχειρήσεις 
άνταπολλύναι,  καί  φησεις  ταυτα  ποιων  δίκαια  πράττε  ιν,  ό 
τη  αλήθεια  της  αρετής  επ  ι  μελό  μένος  ;  η  όντως  εΐ  σοφός, 


CRITO 


153 


Cr.  Why,  of  course  we  shall  say  this. 

XII.  Soc.  And  what  if  the  laws  reply  :  “Was  not  this 
the  agreement  between  us  and  you,  that  you  swore  to 
abide  by  the  decisions  the  city  gave  ?  ”  And  if  we  show 
surprise  at  what  they  say,  they  might  go  on  :  “  Do  not  be 
surprised  at  this,  Socrates,  but  answer  us.  You  are  fond, 
we  know,  of  question  and  answer.  Tell  us,  what  have  50  D 
you  against  us  or  against  the  city  that  you  try  to  destroy 
us  ?  Have  we  not  given  you  life  ?  Is  it  not  through  us 
that  your  father  took  your  mother  to  wife  and  begat  you  ? 

Tell  us,  tell  those  of  us  who  are  the  marriage-laws,  have 
you  any  fault  to  find  with  us  ?  ”  “  No,”  I  would  say, 

“  none.”  “  Then  perhaps  you  find  fault  with  the  laws  for 
the  bringing-up  of  children  and  their  education,  the  educa¬ 
tion  that  was  given  to  you  ?  Did  we  not  do  right,  then, 
we  who  have  been  set  over  this,  when  we  bade  your 
father  bring  you  up  to  exercise  your  body  and  cultivate 
your  mind?  ”  “Yes,”  I  would  answer,  “  quite  right.” 

“  Good,”  they  would  reply,  “  and  now  that  you  have  50  E 
been  born  and  brought  up  and  educated,  can  you  say  that 
you  are  not  ours, — our  child  and  our  servant, — you  and 
your  descendants?  And  if  this  is  so,  do  you  think  your 
rights  can  equal  ours  ?  That  you  have  a  right  to  do 
to  us  whatever  we  mean  to  do  to  you  ?  Against  your 
father  you  would  grant  you  had  no  equality  of  rights,  and 
none  against  your  master, — if  you  happened  to  have  a 
master, — to  let  you  do  to  him  whatever  he  did  to  you, 
return  blame  for  blame,  and  blows  for  blows,  and  harm  5 1  A 
for  harm  ;  and  are  you  to  be  allowed  such  rights  against 
your  fatherland  and  its  laws  ?  If  we  mean  to  kill  you 
because  we  think  it  just,  must  you  do  your  best  to  kill  us 


154 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


ώστε  λεληθεν  σε,  ότι  μητρός  τε  και  πατρός  καί  των  άλλων 
προγόνων  απάντων  τιμιωτερόν  εστιν  η  πατρίς  καί  σεμνότερου 
5 1  Β  καί  άγιωτερον  καί  εν  μείζονι  μοίρα  καί  παρά  θεοίς  καί  παρ' 
ανθρώπους  τοίς  νουν  εχουσι,  καί  σεβεσθαι  δει  καί  μάλλον 
υπείκειν  καί  θωπενειν  πατρίδα  χαλεπαίνουσαν  η  πατέρα,  καί 
η  πείθειν  η  ποιείν  ά  άν  κελευη,  καί  πάσχειν,  εάν  τι  προσ- 
τάττΎ]  παθείν,  -ησυχίαν  άγοντα,  εάν  τε  τνπτεσθαι  εάν  τε 
δείσθαι,  εάν  τε  είς  πόλεμον  άγη  τρωθησόμενον  η  άποθα- 
νονμενον,  ποιητεον  ταυτα,  καί  το  δίκαιον  ούτως  εχει,  καί 
ουχι  υπεικτεον  ουδέ  άναχωρητεον  ουδέ  λειπτεον  την  τάξιν, 
51  Οάλλα  και  εν  πολεμώ  καί  εν  δικαστηρίω  καί  πανταχον 
ποιητεον,  ά  άν  κελευη  η  πόλις  καί  η  πατρίς,  η  πείθειν  αυτήν 
η  το  δίκαιον  πεφυκε,  βιάζεσθαι  δε  ουχ  οσιον  ούτε  μητέρα 
ούτε  πατέρα,  πολύ  δε  τούτων  ετι  ηττον  την  πατρίδα ;  ’  τι 
φησομεν  προς  ταυτα,  ω  Κριτών;  άληθη  λεγειν  τους 
νόμους  η  ου  ; 

ΚΡ.  ’'Εμοιγε  δοκέ ί. 

XIII.  2Ω.  ‘  ^κόπει  τοίνυν,  ω  Σωκρατεςξ  φαίεν  αν 
ίσως  οί  νόμοι,  ‘  εί  ημείς  ταυτα  άληθη  λεγομεν,  οτι  ου 
δίκαια  ημάς  επιχειρείς  δράν  ά  νυν  επιχειρείς,  ημείς  γάρ  σε 
γεννησαντες,εκθρεφαντες,  παιδέυσα ντες,  μεταδόντες  απάντων 
5 1  D  ών  οιοι  τ’  η  μεν  καλών  σοί  καί  τοίς  άλλοις  πάσιν  πολίταις, 
όμως  προαγορευομεν  τω  εξουσίαν  πεποιηκεναι  * Αθηναίων 
τω  βουλομενω,  επειδάν  δοκιμασθη  καί  ίδη  τα  εν  τη  πόλει 
πράγματα  καί  ημάς  τους  νόμους,  ω  άν  μη  άρεσκωμεν 
ημείς ,  εξείναι  λαβόντα  τα  αυτοί)  άπιεναι  όποι  αν  βουληται. 
καί  ουδείς  ημών  των  νόμων  εμποδων  εστιν  ουδ ’  απαγορεύει, 
εάν  τε  τις  βουληται  υμών  εις  αποικίαν  ίεναι,  εί  μη  άρεσκοι- 
μεν  ημείς  τε  καί  η  πόλις,  εάν  τε  μετοικείν  άλλοσε  ελθων, 
Ιεναι  εκε ίσε,  όποι  άν  βουληται,  εχοντα  τα  αυτου.  δς  δ’  αν 


CRITO 


1 5  5V 

in  your  turn  ?  Can  you  claim  that  you  have  a  right  to  this, 
you,  the  lover  of  virtue  ?  Is  this  your  wisdom,  not  to  know 
that  above  father  and  mother  and  forefathers  stands  our 
country,  dearer  and  holier  than  they,  more  sacred,  and  held 
in  more  honour  by  God  and  men  of  understanding  ?  That  5 1  B 
you  ought  to  reverence  her,  and  submit  to  her  and  work 
for  her  when  she  is  in  need,  for  your  country  more  than 
for  your  father,  and  either  win  her  consent  or  obey  her 
will,  suffer  what  she  bids  you  suffer,  and  hold  your 
peace  ;  be  it  imprisonment  or  blows,  or  wounds  in  war 
or  death, — it  must  be  borne,  and  it  is  right  it  should  be 
borne ;  there  must  be  no  yielding,  no  running  away,  no 
deserting  of  one’s  post :  in  war  and  in  the  law-courts  and  5 1  C 
everywhere  we  must  do  what  our  city  bids  us  do  and  our 
country,  or  else  convince  her  where  justice  lies.  For  it  is 
not  lawful  to  use  force  against  father  or  mother,  and  still 
less  against  our  fatherland.”  What  shall  we  say  to 
this,  Crito  ?  That  the  laws  speak  the  truth  or  not  ? 

Cr.  I  believe  they  do. 

XIII.  Soc.  “Then  see,  Socrates,”  they  might  go  on, 

“if  what  we  say  is  true,  you  have  no  right  to  do  to  us 
what  you  are  thinking  of  doing.  We  begat  you,  we 
brought  you  up,  we  taught  you,  we  gave  you  and  all  your  5 1  D 
fellow-citizens  of  our  fairest  and  our  best,  and  still  we 
offer  full  liberty  to  any  Athenian  who  likes,  after  he  has 
seen  and  tested  us  and  all  that  is  done  in  our  city,  to  take 
his  goods  and  leave  us,  if  we  do  not  please  him,  and  go 
wherever  he  would.  None  of  us  stand  in  his  way,  none 
of  us  forbid  him,  should  he  wish  to  part  from  us  and  go 
elsewhere  to  live,  if  we  and  our  city  do  not  satisfy  him  ; 
he  may  go  where  he  likes,  taking  his  goods  with  him. 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


ι56 


5 1  Ε  νμων  παραμείνη,  ορών  ον  τρόπον  ημείς  τάς  τε  όίκας  δικάζε 

μεν  καί  τάλλα  την  πόλιν  διοικονμεν,  ηδη  φαμεν  τοντο 
ωμολογηκεναι  εργω  ημίν  α  αν  ημείς  κελεύω  μεν  ποιήσει 
ταντα,  και  τον  μη  πειθόμενον  τριχη  φαμεν  άδικείν,  οτι  τ 
γεννηταίς  ονσιν  ημίν  ον  πείθεται ,  και  ότι  τροφενσι,  κα 
οτι  όμολογησας  ημίν  πείθεσθαι  ούτε  πείθεται  οντε  πείθε 

52  Α  η  μας,  εί  μη  καλώς  τι  ποιονμεν’  προτιθεντων  |  ημών  κα 

ονκ  αγρίως  επιταττόντων  ποιείν  α  αν  κελενωμεν,  άλλί 
εφιεντων  δυοΐν  θάτερα,  η  πείθειν  ημάς  η  ποιείν,  τοντων  ον 
δετερα  ποιεί.  1 

XIV.  Ύανταις  δη  φαμεν  καί  σε,  ^ ωκρατες ,  ται< 
αίτίαις  ενεζεσθαι,  είπερ  ποιήσεις  α  επινοείς,  και  ούχ 
ήκιστα  Αθηναίων  σε,  άλλ’  εν  τοίς  μάλιστα .’  εί  οχν  εγά 
εΐποιμι'  διά  τί  δη ;  ίσως  αν  μον  δικαίως  καθάπτοιντί 
λεγοντες,  ότι  εν  τοίς  μάλιστα  ’ Αθηναίων  εγω  αντοίς 
ωμολογηκως  τυγχάνω  ταντην  την  ομολογίαν ·  φαίεν  γάρ 
52  Βαν  οτι  ‘  ω  ^ωκρατες,  μεγάλα  ημίν  τοντων  τεκμήριά  εστιν, 
οτι  σοι  και  ημείς  ηρεσκομεν  καί  η  πόλις ·  ον  γάρ  άν  ποτέ 
των  άλλων  ’ Αθηναίων  απάντων  διαφερόντως  εν  αντη 
επεδημεις,  εί  μη  σοι  διαφερόντως  ηρεσκεν,  και  οντ  επί 
θεωρίαν  πωποτ  εκ  της  πόλεως  επήλθες,  οντε  άλλοσε 
ονδαμόσε,  εί  μη  ποι  στρατενσόμενος,  οντε  άλλην  αποδη¬ 
μίαν  εποιησω  πωποτε,  ώσπερ  οί  άλλοι  άνθρωποι,  ονδ’ 
επιθυμία  σε  άλλης  πόλεως  ονδε  άλλων  νόμων  ελαβεν 
είδεναι,  αλλά  ημείς  σοι  ικανοί  ημεν  καί  η  ημετερα  πόλις’ 
5  2  C  ουτω  σφόδρα  ημάς  ηρον,  καί  ωμολόγεις  καθ'  ημάς  πολιτεν- 
σεσθαι,  τά  τε  άλλα  καί  παίδας  εν  αντη  εποιησω,  ώς 
άρεσκονσης  σοι  της  πόλεως.  ετι  τοίννν  εν  αυτή  τη  δίκη 
έξην  σοι  φνγης  τιμησασθαι,  εί  εβονλον,  καί  οπερ  ννν 
άκονσης  της  πόλεως  επιχειρείς,  τότε  εκονσης  ποιησαι.  σν  δε 


CRITO 


lSl 


i*  Only  if  he  stays  with  us  after  seeing  how  we  judge  our  5 1  E 
!  cases  and  how  we  rule  our  city,  then  we  hold  that  he  has 
;  pledged  himself  by  his  action  to  do  our  bidding.  And  if 
ti  he  will  not,  we  say  that  he  is  thrice  guilty, — because  we  are 
;>his  parents  and  he  disobeys  us,  and  because  we  are  his 
guardians,  and  because  after  promising  obedience  he  neither 
obeys  us  nor  persuades  us  to  obey  him,  supposing  us  to  have 
done  anything  amiss.  Yet  we  are  no  tyrants,  we  only  5  2  A 
'suggest  that  he  should  do  as  we  bid  him,  but  when  we 
offer  him  the  choice  of  persuading  us  or  obeying  us,  he 
does  neither  the  one  thing  nor  the  other. 

XIV.  “  It  is  of  this  charge,  Socrates,  this  and  of  no 
other,  that  we  say  you  will  be  guilty,  if  you  do  what  you 
have  in  mind,  and  guilty  in  the  last  degree,  you,  of  all 
Athenians.”  And  if  I  were  to  answer  :  “  But  why, 
pray  ?  ”  they  might  well  retort  on  me  that  I  of  all 
Athenians  had  given  the  pledge  of  which  we  spoke. 

“  Socrates,”  they  would  say,  “  we  find  abundance  of  proof  5  2  B 
that  you  have  been  satisfied  with  us  and  with  our  city. 

You  would  never  have  spent,  as  you  have  spent,  more  time 
in  it  than  any  other  Athenian  if  it  had  not  pleased  you  more  ; 
you  never  left  it  to  go  on  pilgrimage,  or  for  any  other  journey 
whatsoever,  unless  it  were  to  serve  in  war  ;  you  never  once 
stayed  in  any  other  country  as  other  men  have  done  ;  you 
never  had  a  wish  to  see  another  city  or  other  laws  ;  we 
and  our  city  were  enough  for  you.  So  decided  was  your 
choice  of  us,  and  your  pledge  to  accept  our  government;  5 2  C 
yes,  and  you  begat  children  here,  to  show  that  the  city 
pleased  you  well.  Moreover,  during  your  own  trial  you 
could  have  fixed  your  punishment  at  exile,  if  you  had 
wished,  and  have  done  with  the  city’s  consent  what  you 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


τότε  μεν  εκαλλωπίζου  ως  ουκ  άγαν  ακτών,  ει  δέοι  τεθνάναι 
σε,  άλλα  ?7ρου,  ως  εφησθα,  προ  της  φυγής  θάνατον ·  νϊν 
δε  ουτ’  εκείνους  τους  λόγους  αίσχυνει,  ούτε  ημών  των 
νόμων  εντρεπει,  επιχείρων  διαφθείραι,  πράττεις  τε  άπερ  αν 
5  2  D  δούλος  φαυλότατος  πράξειεν,  άποδιδράσκε tv  επιχείρων 
παρά  τάς  ξυνθήκας  τε  και  τάς  ομολογίας,  καθ’  ας  ημίν 
ξυνεθου  πολίτευεσθαι.  πρώτον  μεν  ουν  ημίν  τουτ  αυτό 
άπόκριναι,  εΐ  άληθη  λεγομεν  φάσκοντες  σε  ω  μολογη  κεναι 
πολίτευεσθαι  καθ'  ημάς  εργω,  άλλ’  ου  λόγω,  η  ουκ  άληθη. 
τι  φωμεν  προς  ταυτα,  ω  Κριτών  ;  άλλο  τι  η  όμολογωμεν ; 

ΚΡ.  ’ Ανάγκη ,  ω  Σωκρατες. 

5Ω.  ‘  Άλλο  τι  ουν/  αν  φαίεν,  ‘  η  ξυνθήκας  τάς  προς 
ημάς  αύτους  και  ομολογίας  παραβαίνεις,  ουχ  υπο  άνάγκης 

52  Ε  ομολογησας  ουδέ  άπατηθείς  ουδέ  εν  όλίγω  χρόνω  αναγκα¬ 

στεί  ς  βουλευσασθαι  άλλ’  εν  ετεσιν  εβδομήκοντα,  εν  οΓς 
έξην  σοι  άπιεναι,  ει  μη  ηρεσκομεν  ημείς  μηδε  δίκαιαι 
εφαίνοντό  σοι  αι  δμολογίαι  είναι;  συ  δέ  ούτε  Αακεδαίμονα 
προηρου  ούτε  Κρήτην,  ας  δη  εκάστοτε  φής  ευνομε ίσθαι, 
ούτε  άλλην  ουδεμίαν  των  ‘  Έλληνίδων  πόλεων  ουδέ  των 

53  Α  βαρβαρικων,  |  άλλα  ελάττω  εξ  αυτής  άπεδήμησας  ή  οι 

χωλοί  τε  καί  τυφλοί  καί  οι  άλλοι  άνάπηροί'  ουτω  σοι 
διαφερόντως  των  άλλων  ’  Αθηναίων  ήρεσκεν  ή  πόλις  τε  καί 
ημείς  οι  νόμοι  δήλον  ότι’  τίνι  γάρ  αν  πόλις  άρεσκοι  ανευ 
νόμων ;  νυν  δε  δή  ουκ  ε  μ  μεν  εις  τοίς  ωμολογημενοις ;  ίαν 
ημίν  γε  πείθη,  ω  2 ώκρατες ·  και  ου  καταγέλαστος  γε  εσει 
εκ  τής  7τόλεως  εξελθων. 

XV.  %κόπει  γάρ  δή,  ταυτα  παραβάς  καί  εξαμαρτανων 
53  Βτι  τούτων  τι  άγαμόν  εργάσει  σαυτον  ή  τους  επιτήδειους 


CRITO 


*59 


are  prepared  to  do  now  against  her  will.  Yes,  you  took 
high  ground  then,  professing  that  you  would  not  complain 
if  you  had  to  die,  that  you  preferred,  so  you  said,  death  to 
exile.  And  now  you  have  no  respect  for  your  own  words, 
you  have  no  consideration  for  us,  your  country’s  laws, 
ready  as  you  are  to  overthrow  us  ;  you  act  as  the  worst  of  5 2  ^ 
slaves  might  act,  preparing  to  run  away,  breaking  the  con¬ 
tract — the  pledge  you  gave  to  accept  our  government. 

This  is  the  first  question  you  must  answer  :  are  we,  or  are  · 
we  not,  right  in  what  we  say  when  we  assert  that  you  agreed 
to  accept  our  government  in  deed  and  in  truth  ?  ”  What 
are  we  to  say  to  this,  dear  Crito,  what  but  that  we  agree  ? 

Cr.  Yes,  Socrates,  we  must. 

Soc.  “What  is  it  you  are  doing,”  they  might  go  on, 

“  but  breaking  your  covenant  with  us  and  your  pledge  ? 

You  gave  it  under  no  compulsion,  you  were  not  misled,  52  E 
nor  forced  to  decide  in  haste ;  you  had  seventy  years 
during  which  you  might  have  gone  away  if  you  had  not 
been  pleased  with  us,  or  had  not  thought  the  agreement 
fair.  Yet  you  did  not  choose  Lacedaemon  in  preference, 
nor  Crete — though  you  always  say  that  both  of  them  are 
governed  by  good  laws — nor  any  other  city,  barbarian  or 
Greek; — you  left  ours  more  seldom  than  the  lame  can  53  A 
leave  it,  or  the  blind  and  maimed : — so  far  beyond  your 
fellow-citizens  did  you  love  Athens,  and  us  with  her,  her 
laws,  you  must  have  loved.  For  who  could  love  a  city 
without  laws  ?  And  now,  surely,  you  will  not  break  your 
pledge  ?  No,  not  if  you  listen  to  us,  Socrates,  nor  will  you 
make  yourself  a  laughing-stock  by  banishing  yourself. 

XV .  “For  see,  if  you  trangress  like  this,  what  good  will 
you  get  from  it  for  yourself  or  for  your  friends  ?  That  5  3  ^ 


s 


ιόο 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


τους  σαυτου  ;  ότι  μεν  yap  κινδυνευσουσί  ye  σου  οί  ει τι 
τηδειοι  καί  αυτοί  φευγειν  και  στερηθην αι  της  πόλεως  η  τη] 
ουσίαν  άπολεσαι,  σχεδόν  τι  δηλον’  αυτός  δε  πρώτον  με\ 
εάν  εις  των  εγγύτατα  τινα  πόλεων  ελθης,  η  ®  η  βάζε  ί 
Μεγαράδε — ευνομούνται  yap  άμφότεραι — πολέμιος  ηζεις 
ω  ^ωκρατες,  τη  τούτων  πολιτεία,  και  όσοιπερ  κηδονται  τώι 
αυτών  πόλεων,  υποβλεφονταί  σε  διαφθορέα  γούμενοι  τώι 
νόμων,  και  βεβαιώσεις  το ΐς  δικασταίς  την  δόξαν,  ωστι 
5  3  C  δοκέ ΐν  όρθως  την  δίκην  δικάσαι'  όστις  yap  νόμων  διαφθο- 
ρευς  εστιν,  σφόδρα  που  δόξειεν  αν  νέων  ye  καί  ανοήτωι 
ανθρώπων  δια φθορευς  είναι,  πότερον  ουν  φευξει  τάς  τι 
ευνομουμενας  πόλεις  και  των  άνδρων  τους  κοσμιωτάτους  , 
καί  τούτο  ποιουντι  αρα  άξιόν  σοι  ζην  εσται ;  η  πλησιάσεις 
τουτοις  καί  άναισχυντησεις  διαλεγόμενος — τίνας  λόγους,  ω 
θεοκράτες;  η  ουσπερ  ενθάδε,  ως  η  αρετή  καί  η  δικαιοσύνη 
πλείστου  άξιον  τοίς  άνθρωποις  καί  τα  νόμιμα  καί  οι  νόμοι ; 
53  D  και  ουκ  οίει  άσχημον  αν  φανεΐσθαι  το  του  Ίξωκράτονς 
πράγμα ;  οΐεσθαί  γε  χρη·  άλλ’  εκ  μεν  τούτων  των  τόπων 
άπαρεΐς,  ηξεις  δε  εις  Θετταλιαν  παρά  τους  ξένους  τους 
Κριτωνος·  εκεί  γάρ  δη  πλείστη  αταξία  καί  ακολασία,  καί 
ίσως  αν  ηδεως  σου  άκουοιεν,  ώς  γελοίως  εκ  του  δεσμω¬ 
τηρίου  άπεδίδρασκες  σκευήν  τε  τινα  περιθεμενος  η  διφθεραν 
λαβών  η  άλλα  οια  δη  είωθασιν  ενσκευάζεσθαι  οί  άποδι- 
δράσκοντες,  καί  το  σχήμα  το  σαυτοΰ  μεταλλάξας'  ότι  δε 
53  Ε  γέρων  άνηρ  σ μικρού  χρόνου  τω  βίω  λοιπού  όντος,  ως  το 
εικός,  ετόλμησ ας  όντως  αίσχρως  επιθυμείν  ζην,  νόμους  τους 
μεγίστους  παραβάς,  ούδείς  δς  ερεί ;  ίσως,  αν  μη  τινα 
λυττης *  ει  δε  μη,  ακούσει,  ω  5 ωκρατες ,  πολλά  καί  ανάξια 
σαυτου.  υπερχόμενος  δη  βιωσει  πάντας  άνθρω πους  καί 
δονλενων  τι  ποιων  η  ευωχούμενος  εν  Θετταλία,  ώσπερ 
επί  δεΐπνον  άποδεδημηκως  εις  Θετταλιαν  ;  λόγοι  δε  εκείνοι 


CRITO 


161 


your  friends  as  well  as  you  will  run  the  risk  of  exile 
and  banishment  and  loss  of  property,  is  fairly  plain. 

And  for  yourself,  say  you  go  to  one  of  the  cities  near, 
to  Thebes  or  Megara,  both  governed  by  good  laws, 
your  coming,  Socrates,  will  be  a  danger  to  their  govern¬ 
ment,  and  those  who  love  them  will  suspect  you  of  under¬ 
mining  all  their  laws,  and  so  you  will  confirm  the  opinion 
of  your  judges,  and  they  will  be  sure  that  their  decision  was 
just.  For  he  who  overthrows  the  laws  will  most  assuredly  53  C 
be  thought  to  ruin  the  young  and  foolish.  Must  you 
then  avoid  all  well-governed  cities  and  all  civilised 
men  ?  And  if  you  do,  will  it  be  worth  your  while  to 
live  ?  Or  will  you  go  to  them  and  have  the  audacity  to 

talk  with  them  and  say — what  will  you  say,  Socrates  ? — 
what  you  used  to  say  here  ?  That  goodness  and  righteous¬ 
ness  are  worth  all  things  to  men,  and  lawfulness  and  law  ? 

Do  you  not  think  the  conduct  of  Socrates  would  have  an  53D 
ugly  look  ?  You  are  bound  to  think  so.  But  suppose  you 
go  right  away  and  up  to  Thessaly  and  stay  with  Crito’s 
friends.  1  here  is  plenty  of  lawlessness  and  licence  there, 
and  very  likely  they  would  enjoy  hearing  you  tell  how 
neatly  you  got  away  from  prison,  in  disguise,  wrapped  up 
in  some  queer  dress, — a  peasant’s  leather  coat,  or  something 
else  of  the  kind  that  fugitives  always  have  to  wear.  But 
that  you,  an  old  man,  with  but  a  short  while  in  all  pro- 53  E 
bability  to  live,  had  sunk  to  such  a  craving  for  life  as  to 
transgress  the  highest  laws — will  there  be  no  one  to  tell 
you  that?  Perhaps  not,  if  you  are  careful  never  to  give 
offence, — but  if  you  do,  you  will  have  to  listen  to 
niuch  that  will  be  your  shame.  So  you  are  to  live  by 
cringing  and  truckling  to  every  man — for  what  ?  For  the 


4 


M 


102 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


οί  περί  δικαιοσύνης  τε  καί  της  άλλης  αρετής  7 τον  ημίν  | 
54  Α  εσονται ;  άλλα  δη  των  παίδων  ενεκα  βουλει  ζην ,  ϊνα 
α ντους  εκθρεφης  καί  παίδευσης,  τι  δε;  εις  Θετταλίαν 
α ντους  άγαγων  θρεφεις  τε  καί  παιδεύσεις,  γένους  ποιησας, 
ϊνα  και  τούτο  άπολαυσωσιν ;  η  τούτο  μεν  ον,  αυτου  δε 
τρεφόμενοι  σου  ζωντος  βελτιον  θρέφονται  και  παιδευσονται, 
μη  ξυνόντος  σου  αυτοΐς  ;  οι  yap  επιτήδειοι  οι  σοί  επιμελη- 
σονται  αυτών,  πότερον  εάν  εις  Θετταλϊαν  άπρδημησης, 
επι μελησονται,  εαν  δε  εις  'Άιδου  άποδημησης,  ουχι  επι- 
54  Β  μελησονται ;  ειπερ  γε  τι  όφελος  αυτών  εστιν  των  σοι 
φασκόντων  επιτηδείων  είναι,  οϊεσθαί  yε  χρη. 

ΧΥΙ.  ’  Αλλ’,  ω  ^ώκρατες,  πειθό μένος  ημίν  το ίς  σοϊς 
τροφευσι  μήτε  παϊδας  περί  πλείονος  ποιου  μήτε  το  ζην 
μήτε  άλλο  μηδέν  προ  του  δικαίου,  ϊνα  εις  Άιδου  ελθων 
εχης  πάντα  ταυτα  άπολογησασθαι  τοίς  εκεί  άρχονσιν 
ούτε  yap  ενθάδε  σοι  φαίνεται  ταυτα  πράττοντι  άμεινον 
είναι  ουδέ  δικαιότερου  ουδέ  δσιωτερον,  ουδέ  άλλω  των  σων 
ουδενί,  ούτε  εκε ίσε  άφικομενω  άμεινον  εσται.  άλλα  νυν  μεν 
54  C  ηδίκη μένος  άπει,  εάν  άπίης,  ουχ  υφί  ημών  των  νόμων  αλλα 
ΰπδ  ανθρώπων,  εάν  δε  εζελθης  ούτως  αίσχρως  άνταδικησας 
τε  και  άντικακουργησας ,  τάς  σ αυτου  ομολογίας  τε  και 
ξυνθηκας  τάς  προς  ημάς  παραβάς  και  κακά  εργασαμενος 
τουτους  ους  ήκιστα  εδει,  σαυτόν  τε  και  φίλους  και  πατρίδα 
και  ημάς,  ημείς  τε  σοι  χαλεπα νουμεν  ζωντι,  και  εκεί  οι 
ημετεροι  αδελφοί  οι  εν  * Άιδου  νόμοι  ουκ  ευμενως  σ< 
υποδένονται,  ειδότες  ότι  καί  ημάς  επεχείρησας  άπολεσαι  τι 
5  4  β  σον  μέρος,  άλλα  μη  σε  πείση  Κριτών  ποιεΐν  ά  λίγε 
μάλλον  η  ημείς. 


CRITO 


163 

good  cheer  of  Thessaly  ?  As  though  you  had  gone  there 
for  the  dinners  ?  And  all  those  talks  about  justice  and 
righteousness,  where  are  we  to  find  them  ?  Ah,  but  you  54  A 
must  live,  you  say,  for  your  children’s  sake,  to  bring  them 
up  and  educate  them  !  What  ?  You  will  take  them 
away  to  Thessaly  and  have  them  brought  up  and  educated 
there,  to  make  them  foreigners  and  give  them  the  benefit 
of  that  ?  Or  no, — they  are  to  have  their  education  here, 
but  they  will  be  brought  up  better  and  taught  better  if  you 
live,  although  you  will  not  be  with  them,  because  your 
friends  will  take  care  of  them.  So  your  friends  will  care 
for  them  if  you  go  to  Thessaly,  but  not  if  you  go  to  Death  ? 

Yet  you  would  expect  them  to  care  if  they  are  of  any  54  B 
use,  those  who  call  themselves  your  friends. 

XVI.  “  No,  Socrates,  listen  to  us,  to  us  who  brought 
you  up,  and  do  not  set  your  children  or  your  life  or  any¬ 
thing  else  above  righteousness,  and  so  when  you  go  to  Death 
have  to  defend  yourself  for  this  before  those  who  govern 
there.,  In  this  life  you  do  not  believe  that  to  act  thus  can 
be  good  for  you  or  yours,  or  just  or  righteous ;  and  it 
will  not  be  good  when  you  reach  the  other  world.  As  it  54  C 
is,  if  you  go,  you  will  go  wronged, — wronged  by  men 
though  not  by  us, — but  if  you  went  in  that  disgraceful  way, 
rendering  evil  for  evil  and  wrong  for  wrong,  breaking 
your  own  pledge  and  covenant  with  us,  doing  harm  to  the 
last  that  you  should  harm,  to  yourself  and  your  dear  ones 
and  your  country  and  us,  your  country’s  laws,  then  we 
shall  bear  you  anger  while  you  live,  and  in  that  other 
land  our  brothers,  the  laws  of  Death,  will  not  receive  you 
graciously,  for  they  will  know  you  went  about  to  destroy 
us  so  far  as  in  you  lay.  Therefore  you  must  not  let  54  D 
Crito  over-persuade  you  against  us.” 


ΚΡΙΤΩΝ 


164 

XVII.  Ταυτα,  ώ  φίλε  croupe  Κριτών,  ευ  ϊσθι  οτι  εγώ 
δοκώ  ακόυαν,  ώσπερ  οι  κορυβαντιωντες  των  αυλών  δοκοΰσιν 
ακόυαν,  και  εν  ερ,οι  αυττ;  ^  ήχή  τούτων  των  λόγων  βόμβα 
και  ποια  μη  δυν ασθαι  των  άλλων  ακόυαν *  άλλα  ισ0ι,  όσα 
γε  τά  νυν  ερ,οι  δοκουντα,  εάν  λέγης  παρά  ταυτα,  μάτην 
ερει?.  όμως  ρε'ντοι  εί  τι  οιει  πλέον  ποίησαν  λεγε. 

ΚΡ.  ;Αλλ’,  ώ  ^ώκρατες,  οΰκ  εχω  λεγειν. 

Ε  3Ω.  ,ΛΕα  τοινυν,  ώ  Κριτών,  και  πράττωρεν  ταυτη, 
επειδή  ταυτη  6  θεός  υφηγε ιται. 


CRITO 


165 


XVII.  Crito,  my  dear  friend  Crito,  that,  believe  me, 
that  is  what  I  seem  to  hear,  as  the  Corybants  hear  flutes  in 
the  air,  and  the  sound  of  those  words  rings  and  echoes  in 
my  ears  and  I  can  listen  to  nothing  else.  Believe  me,  so  far 
as  I  see  at  present,  if  you  speak  against  them  you  will 
speak  in  vain.  Still,  if  you  think  you  can  do  any  good, 
say  on. 

Cr.  No,  Socrates,  I  have  nothing  I  can  say. 

Soc .  Then  let  us  leave  it  so,  Crito;  and  let  things  go  54  E 
as  I  have  said,  for  this  is  the  way  that  God  has  pointed 
out 


NOTES 


NOTES  TO  THE  EUTHYPHRO 

Note  i.  p.  9.  Euth.  4  C. 

A  board  of  three  members  called  Interpreters  or  Advisers 
was  appointed  at  Athens,  to  perform  certain  religious 
duties,  and  especially  to  give  advice  for  purification  from 
blood-guiltiness. 

Note  2.  p.  11.  Euth.  5  A. 

“  Before  the  trial  began  either  party  could  challenge  the 
other  in  the  presence  of  witnesses  to  take  some  particular 
step.  In  case  the  challenge  was  declined,  evidence  was 
given  at  the  trial  that  the  challenge  had  been  refused,  with 
a  view  to  prejudice  the  refuser’s  case.”  (Abridged  from  Dr. 
Adam’s  edition  of  the  Euthyphro. ) 

Note  3.  p.  35.  Euth.  11  C. 

The  statues  of  the  semi-mythic  sculptor  Daedalus  were 
said  to  move.  Socrates,  as  the  son  of  a  sculptor,  claims 
him  in  jest  as  his  heroic  “  eponymous  ”  ancestor. 

Note  4.  p.  39.  Euth.  12  D. 

The  Greek  means  literally  “  whatever  was  not  unequal¬ 
sided  but  with  two  sides  equal.”  The  comparison  is  to  a 
triangle,  Greek  arithmetic  being  closely  associated  with 
geometry. 


I 


167 


NOTES  TO  THE  APOLOGY 


I 

Note  5.  p.  65.  Ap.  21  A. 

In  404  b.c.  after  the  submission  to  Sparta,  the  democratic 
government  of  Athens  was  overthrown.  A  body  of  thirty 
oligarchs,  appointed  at  first  provisionally,  got  practically 
the  whole  power  into  their  hands  and  acted  with  great 
injustice  and  cruelty.  The  leading  democrats  of  those 
who  escaped  judicial  murder  went  into  exile,  but  in  a 
year’s  time  effected  a  re-entry,  partly  by  force  of  arms,  and 
established  the  democracy  again. 

Note  6.  p.  97.  Ap.  32  B. 

This  was  after  the  sea-fight  of  Arginusae,  406  b.c.,  one 
of  the  last  Athenian  successes  in  the  Peloponnesian  war. 
In  spite  of  the  success,  twenty-five  ships  were  lost.  Their 
crews  were  not  saved,  and  it  was  felt  that  the  generals — 
eight  in  number — must  have  been  careless  in  the  matter. 
The  popular  indignation  was  extreme ;  the  case  was  tried 
in  the  Assembly,  and  the  generals  were  sentenced  to  death 
in  a  body.  This  was  contrary  to  recognised  law,  as  each 
should  have  been  tried  separately. 

Note  7.  p.  1 1 3.  Ap.  37  C. 

The  Eleven  formed  a  board  consisting  of  a  secretary  and 
ten  members  appointed  by  lot  ry  year.  They  had 
charge  of  the  prisons  and  superintended  executions. 


Richard  Clay  Csf  Sons ,  Limited ,  London  and  Bungay. 


φ 


/amp? 


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